I Love Yoko
by TheHarlequinRevolver
Summary: Starts a few years before Phase 1. This story explains the constant "I Love Yoko" stickers 2D has. No pairings yet, I haven't decided. Yoko is an OC in this story. Planning on going all the way up to Phase 3. Starts in Yoko's POV, I'll tell if it changes.
1. Bad Beginnings

Being a starving kid musician ain't fun. Even if your name is Yoko. It gets a lot of compliments, sure, but I'm no Yoko Ono. I tour with my dad's metal band. They don't even have a name, they're that bad. I honestly think I could be doing a lot better things instead of throwing my life away with my father's band at 13. I play bass in his little outfit. Compared to my favorite bands, such as The Clash, we're horrible. I really wanted to get out of the music scene.

I remember the day when I played my last gig. It was some place called Agrus Tavern in central London. It was my dad's favorite bar. My father was the ugliest person I had ever met. He was extremely tall and had greasy dark blonde hair. He always has a toothpick in his mouth and dark glasses covered his icy eyes. He was always dating some woman. After every gig, he would add a new woman to his "collection", as he would call it. I would usually fall asleep in the van afterwards. Our lives and views on things are obviously pretty different.

The two other people in the band were late that night. My dad, the lead singer, was having a fit because we were literally going to need to step on the stage without them. "Those little…" he continued to curse loudly. The backstage was anything but pleasant. Trash was lying around everywhere. My father lit a cigar and took a long drag. Smoking calmed him. He sighed. "Yoko, go outsi'." He mumbled. I had to obey him, there was no choice. I stepped over an abnormally large mound of old cigarettes and proceeded to open the rusty, old door. A parking lot faced me. Men and women loitered in the alleyway the door opened to. A small, moth covered light was the only brightness. There were drunken buffoons collapsed beside the door. Women were dressed in skimpy outfits. It was then that I realized what my life had become: a mess. No school, no money, no house, nothing. This band was my life. I didn't even like it, either. I sat down beside the drunks and held my knees to my face. I couldn't continue like this.

SCREECH! All of the drunken idiots stood up and ran. A large white van had crammed itself into the alleyway. The doors opened. The other band members had decided to show up. The two men got out. My least favorite, Joe, stepped out first. He had long black hair that had a wide purple streak in the front. He always treated me like rubbish. Whether it be breaking down what little self esteem I had just for the fun of it or screaming at me if I hit a bad note, he had done it. The other one was Paul. He never really noticed me. He's kind of thick, but he's better than Joe. "Come'un, ya dullard!" Joe screamed. Joe never had to bring his drumset anywhere, so it was only Paul and me that had to haul something around. Paul played guitar. He wasn't that good, although most people in the places we played were so drunk that they could care less. Paul was also a mute. He turned around and got his guitar out of the back of the van. "Go on, close the door!" Joe yelled. He was obviously agitated that Paul was being worse than usual. "Where's your father?" Joe asked. "Insid'" I replied quietly. The two men slinked through the door, Joe smacking my head in the process. I grunted and followed them in.

After a long screaming match, my father was determined to go on, even though we were 30 minutes late. We walked out onto the puny makeshift stage and performed. Little did I know that a man that would change my life was sitting right in the audience.


	2. The Bass Slayer

Ok, so this is how you do an Author's Note? Cool... ok. Just to let you know, reviews make me uber happy. I literally went crazy when I found out I had two reviews. ^^; So yeah, enjoy this chapter

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Deep in the Agrus Tavern sat thirty year old Murdoc Faust Niccals on June 3rd, 1996. He was at this bar for two reasons. One, to get drunk, and two, to find some sort of talent for his superstar band that just hasn't been put together yet. He wasn't intoxicated enough to not hear the thumping of a bass that sounded almost better than his. He looked up from his glass of rum to the stage. His eyes scanned for the bassist. His eyebrows furrowed when he found out that it was only a little girl. "She can play that well? No…" he thought to himself. "She's gonna be in my band."

The music droned on for an hour or so more. Murdoc watched the whole time. He impatiently clacked his untrimmed fingernails on his empty glass, anticipating the end of the concert. The other drunks in the room were making quite a racket. The concert finally ended. There was no clapping, just people yelping for a refill for their beers. Murdoc knew this was his chance. He knew the bar owner well, so he wouldn't give a rat's behind if he snuck backstage. Murdoc slithered through the tattered red curtains to the beat up backstage. He had played this tavern with his makeshift bands before, usually with a low turnout. That girl was nowhere to be found. The lead singer was, however, chugging down a bottle of whiskey while in the arms of some scandalous women. Murdoc had seen some of those women before. The other men were nowhere to be seen. He had seen the girl sitting in the alleyway by the building when he walked in, maybe she was there. Murdoc continued his search and exited the worn bar. Sure enough, the girl was sitting right beside the entrance, almost asleep. Murdoc had a plan. A pretty devious one that would take advantage of her drunk father.

That plan happened to work. The resemblance between this girl and her father was ridiculous. He wanted this girl in his band at any cost. The plan Murdoc executed didn't take long. The drunken lead singer had given his daughter away to Murdoc Faust Niccals after striking up a fifteen minute conversation, verbal contract and all. Now, it was time for the hard part; convincing the kid. Murdoc wasn't good with children. His heart was too hardened. But he had to do it anyway.

What had he gotten himself into?

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Yoko's POV

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That concert had taken a lot out of me, whether it had been because a person kept on chucking saltine crackers at me or because my father was badly drunk. I really don't know anymore. I reestablished my perch outside the alleyway door. More disgusting things were going on outside now. I sat for a few minutes, contemplating the nights events. I didn't know things were about to get more freaky.

A tall man with greasy, jet black hair exited the bar. He glared over at me. He was wearing a simple grey shirt and black jeans. His Cuban heeled boots clacked on the cobblestone. "Ge' up." he said in a husky tone. How did he know me? I grunted. "Why?" I questioned, my eyes dwelling to the ground. "I swea', jus' get up, ya..." before the man could finish, my father came strolling out the door, women hanging on his shoulders. "Dad!" I yelped. "I'm no' your fatha anymore. This chap is. Goo' luck, I neva wanted a daughta' anyway." he slurred. My mind crashed. I knew my father never really cared for me, but just thinking that he said it out loud made my head spin. My father got in the back of the van with the others, and the van drove off with Joe driving. I looked up at this new person who would be taking care of me. He didn't look ideal. He actually seemed appalling. "Come on, ya runt. You're gonna be in my band, ya got tha'? My name's Murdoc Niccals, bass slayer of the world's best band. I just haven't got anyone else in i' yet." I just looked at him. The last thing I wanted to do was to be in another band, much less with this clown. He was smiling, which showed his spiky yellow teeth and abnormally long tongue. Although, the odd thing was that deep in my soul, I felt I could trust him. Somehow, somewhere, I knew it was possible. "Where will I be staying?" I asked. "My apartment, yeah? Is tha' good enuf'?" his voice was tinted with slight anger. "Fine." I said hastily. He pointed his scrawly finger to his car, which was parked on the street outside the alleyway. It was an old, red sedan that looked quite unreliable. We walked there in silence and drove to my newfound home.


	3. The Introduction of StuPot

Hey... I'm gonna try to update this every day. I'm having fun writing this!

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AUTHOR'S POV

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The new pair rode off to Murdoc's junky little apartment in Stoke-On-Trent. He was driving a bit too fast. Nobody noticed. Yoko studied him. His skin was almost a greenish shade, but not quite. It was more of an olive color. His mismatched eyes glinted in the moonlight. "Wha's your name, kid?" he asked. "Oh, um, it's Yoko." She said back. Murdoc grunted. Yoko drifted her attention to the scenery. The usually grey, dull, streets had become livelier. People were going from bar to bar and were mingling just about everywhere. "Murdoc?" she asked. He had a toothpick in his mouth. "Wha'?" He seemed irritated. "If you're a so-called bass slayer, then wha'm I gonna do in this band?" He looked at her like she was an idiot. "Well, love, there's nothin' wrong wif two bassists! I'm the betta one, so it won't really matter. Or ya could learn to play guitar, which we need two of. Maybe even backing vocals. Take yer pick." He mused. "I'll take guitar. Shouldn't be tha' difficult." "Good."

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YOKO'S POV (One Year Later)

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One year. One whole year with Murdoc Niccals. I couldn't take it anymore. It seemed a lot longer than a year. In fact, it was. Murdoc brought home trashy women every single day, so I had to usually sit in the bathroom and practice on one of the old electric guitars he had without plugging it in. We hadn't found that other guitarist, drummer or lead singer that we were supposed to, either. It was a heck of a lot better than living with my real father, who I had put out of my mind.

On the morning of August 15th, 1997, I woke up on Murdoc's old yellow couch. I needed to check the time. Murdoc kept it really dark inside, so I never knew what time it was. I got up and crawled over to Murdoc's bed, which was only a few feet away. I had to be dead silent. I had learned what would happen if I woke up Murdoc the day after I moved into his apartment. He complained the rest of the day and wouldn't let me try out one of the old guitars. I looked on the nightstand. 9:34 AM, it said. "Good," I thought. I needed to get some new guitar strings. The old electric guitars Murdoc had scattered around weren't in the best condition. I had taken a liking to a lime green Les Paul. It wasn't in as bad condition as the others. I had bought a lot of stuff from this music store down in Crawley called Uncle Norm's Organ Emporium. Even if the place was kind of far away, it was the only place that sold the guitar strings I needed. It looked like it was raining pretty heavily outside, so I wrote Murdoc a note saying where I was going (He probably wasn't going to read it anyway.) and I got a cab to Uncle Norm's.

The drive to Crawley was uneventful. The rain didn't let up. It just got worse. The cab driver dropped me off about a block away from where I was supposed to be. I ran all the way, my arms full with my guitar and umbrella. My eyes stung from the humidity as I entered Uncle Norm's. The usual Saturday boy was there, that was it. Uncle Norm's didn't just have organs. They had almost anything you could want for your guitar or bass. They had at least five aisles for all of that kind of stuff. I walked up to the counter and approached the boy there. He looked pretty young, probably nineteen. He was tall, too. He was at least six feet tall. I was five feet, seven inches, so he didn't seem that tall to me. But his most striking feature was his azure blue hair that stuck out in all different directions. He seemed very attractive. I placed my guitar on the counter. "Do you mind if I put this here?" I asked. "O-oh, no' at all, love. Go right ahead." He replied. He was blushing. I flashed him a quiet smile and headed towards the aisle with the strings. I was very picky about what strings I used. Half the time you couldn't find a place that sold them. They were a golden color. Uncle Norm's was the only place that had them. I grabbed a pack and headed back towards the register. "Tha's a nice guitar ya go' there." The boy tried to start up a conversation. "I've had ta fix i' up a lot over the past year. Do ya play?" I asked. He nodded. "I like ta sing more though. I also play keyboards, which is why ya findin' me 'ere." He said with a smile. "Tha's cool. Here's the money for the strings." I handed him a few pounds and he put them in the register. "So, eh, do ya live 'ere in Crawley?" he asked casually. "Nah, I live in Stoke." He looked at me curiously. "That's an awful long way from 'ere." I nodded back at him. "This place is nicer than Stoke, though." I said. "A' least there's no Murdoc Niccals 'ere." I said under my breath. "Who's Murdoc?" the keyboardist asked. "My… eh… guardian, I guess ya could call 'em. My dad literally gave me away to 'im. 'E brings home these trashy girls every night, e's trying to start the world's biggest band… it's ridiculous, ya know?" I ranted. "I live wif my parents. Doubt they'd lemme go if I tried." he rested his hand on the side of his head. There was a long pause. I shifted in my spot. "Where'd ya get your blue 'air?" I questioned. He looked down. "I won't laugh at ya, I promise." I said. "I fell outta a tree when I was a kid, an' my 'air fell out. It just grew back blue. I dun like it, really. Kids used to tease me." I cocked an eyebrow and felt my own long towhead blonde hair. It had some grey and pink streaks in it. I had put them in years ago when I was kid. "What's your name, by the way?" I changed the subject. "Stuart. Stuart Pot. Some people call me Stu-Pot." I shook his hand. "I'm Yoko. Kind of like Yoko Ono." I said in return. "Well, Yoko, feel free to hang around as long as you'd like, I'm sure…" Stuart was majorly interrupted by a huge bang. A car had collided with the large window in Uncle Norm's. "Stuart!" I screamed. It was too late. The car had collided with Stuart's face. Blood went everywhere. There was screaming outside. I threw myself onto the floor, getting covered in debris in the process. I had just witnessed someone die.

I was bawling before I heard a laugh. A laugh that I had known for over a year. I picked up my face and saw Murdoc and his little buddies laughing at Stuart. I pulled myself up some more and gave Murdoc the death stare. "What did you do to him?" I screamed. The laughing stopped. "Aw, come on! When did you get 'ere?" Murdoc threw his hands up in distress. "Get out, both a ya!" he yelled at his so called "friends". I was livid. I took a few steps towards him. "Why?" I asked. He just stood there. Before anyone could utter another word, the police showed up to the scene. The sirens were blaring, and all I remember is blacking out.

I remember waking up in the hospital, asleep in a chair. I smelled cigarette smoke next to me. "Murdoc." I thought. My eyes flickered open. I was in a hospital room with Murdoc and two other people. The other man and woman were surrounding the hospital bed, while Murdoc was smoking a Lucky Lung in the seat next to me. The lady was quite round and plump, and her supposed husband was tall. The lady turned around to face me. "Oh, fank goodness you're awright!" she chirped happily. "Wha' the 'ell?" I moaned. "Did you see our Stuart in that crash?" she chirped again. "Yeah, I think so… is 'e awright?" I asked, still dazed. "Well, 'e hasn't woken up in a few days. The doctas feel e's in a coma." Stuart's father answered woefully. "We already went ta court. They say you're sentenced to 30000 hours of community service and you have to care for our Stuart for ten hours per week. Well, not you, but this character next to you is." He continued. Murdoc sighed a little too loudly. I tried to look at things optimistically. "Oh come on, Murdoc, how bad could it get?"


	4. Close Your Eyes and See

Hey guys. Sorry I haven't kept up with the "Update every day" promise. This chapter is long though, and it took forever to write, so enjoy! REVIEW PLEASE!

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As I had predicted, caring for Stuart wasn't bad at all. He was a vegetable now; he couldn't do anything. I actually enjoyed staying with Stuart in the hospital. I could talk to him knowing that he wouldn't repeat anything to anyone. However, almost none of the time Murdoc needed to spend with him wasn't spent in the hospital. He dragged Stuart everywhere with him, also beating him up in the process.

We cared for Stu for a few months with minimal problems. I did most of the work, however. Murdoc just fooled around, as always. Stuart went everywhere with us. Including the time when Murdoc decided to show off to the ladies in his Vauxhall Astra.

"Muds, slow down!" I screamed, while trying to hold the vegetable Stuart Pot in place in the back seat. Murdoc only cackled, his drunk companion beside him, laughing his head off. The bald man was a friend of Murdoc's who I utterly despised. He reminded me of Joe, in a way. Murdoc had found a group of sleazy women to show off to in a car park. We were supposed to be taking Stuart back to the hospital, but Murdoc had to sneak in some sort of "fun" somewhere in the trip. After a lady took her shirt off, Murdoc went crazy. He started doing complicated tricks at over seventy miles per hours. My job in the backseat was to make sure that poor Stuart didn't go through the window or anything. Nothing seemed to be working. Stuart bounced all over and his head fell into the window. After quickly pulling him up, Murdoc decided that it would be appropriate to do a doughnut at ninety miles per hour. Setting off his signature cackle, he smashed his foot on the gas. Everything was spinning. I felt my lunch curdle its way up my throat. I felt my face fall into the window, causing it to crack. After that, I heard more glass smash and some more laughing. That was it.

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AUTHOR'S POV

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Murdoc's little stunt had turned into a nightmare within seconds. At ninety five miles per hour, Stuart Pot went soaring through the windshield of the decrepit red Vauxhall Astra. Glass shattered into Murdoc's face. He felt a twinge of guilt, but it was soon overthrown by the feeling of utter hilariousness. He chortled loudly along with his drunken mate as Stuart skidded five hundred yards across the pavement and launched into the curb. He didn't even notice poor Yoko's fate as she collided with the side window. Seeing that the girls outside were quite impressed by his skills, him and his friend strutted out of the car. Roaring applause greeted them. As his dissipated cohort howled and waved at the screaming crowd, Murdoc glanced over to where Stuart had skidded. He used his hand as a visor and squinted. A tall figure had arisen from the same spot Stu would have been in. "Just a passerby." thought Murdoc, and soon he turned back to soak in his glory.

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The curb was bloody. Stuart Pot was no longer vegetablized as he stood up to face the world once more. He could see two men hollering to a crowd of women in the nearby car park. All of his memories had come back to him; even the exact moment that that old car hit his face one year ago. He remembered the expression on the driver's face and what he looked like. He had olive skin, greasy hair with a long, shaggy Beatle haircut, and was wearing an all grey and black outfit, complete with an inverted cross. His scowl was irreplaceable; his teeth were like a shark's. Stuart pulled himself off the curb and put his hand to his face. It was bloody like the curb, as expected. He stood up for the first time in a long time to look at his reflection in a nearby car window. His legs were wobbly from the lack of movement he had suffered from. He was appalled by the sight that greeted him in the makeshift mirror. He looked worse than one of the zombies from the horror films he loved so much. Both of his eyes were punched out now. The right one was puffy and bloodier than the other one. His blue hair was even messier than usual, but was fairly clean, not counting the fresh blood on it. His two front teeth were knocked out. Fresh bruises adorned his face. A small amount of stubble was present on his chin. The boy scratched it. The first thing on his mind was going home to play his beloved keyboard. He had no idea where he was, however. The blue haired lad sighed. There was nothing else to do in the situation, so he made his way over to the large crowd that was forming a few hundred yards away. It was getting a little bit easier to walk now. As he approached the crowd, a man turned around on the heel of his boots. Both of the men stared at each other, wide eyed. 2D was staring at the man who had killed him almost twice; Murdoc was staring at the vegetable that had almost risen from the dead. After just one look at him, Murdoc hoped that this boy could sing, because regardless of talent, he had just found the pretty boy frontman for his world famous band.

Murdoc slipped through the crowd with Stu in tow. "Ge' in the car, ya dullard." Murdoc mumbled. Stuart followed his every command. He entered the Astra cautiously. "Well, now I think it's time ya knew about what 'appened to ya, eh? Well, I'm gonna tell ya." Murdoc said, a smirk adorning hateful face. Murdoc told Stuart about how he took care of him night and day and how he took such good care of him. He couldn't have been much farther from the truth, but Murdoc wasn't an idiot. He knew he could get right through to Stuart, with or without lies. Of course, Stu believed every word that was said. The Astra sped off to Murdoc's abode, nobody noticing young Yoko in the back. "Murdoc, you're really my hero!" Stuart gave Murdoc a toothy grin. Murdoc only snickered. He knew he had this boy wrapped around his finger.

Stuart sat patiently and looked out the window. There wasn't anything interesting, as usual. "Eh, Murdoc?" he asked. "What?" Murdoc replied, irritated. "C-can I 'ave a c-cigarette?" Stuart stumbled. "Woteva. 'Ere." Murdoc threw him his pack of Lucky Lungs. Delighted, the keyboardist flicked out his lighter and was soon taking a long drag. The car suddenly came to a stop, throwing Stu almost through the windshield again. Murdoc cursed him out as he got out of the car. As he stepped up the old stairs to enter the building, Murdoc heard Stu yelling about something. "Wot's wrong now?" Murdoc sighed. "T-there's a girl in the car! 'Er head cracked the window!" Stuart was rambling. "Oh, for the love of sweet Satan…" Murdoc went over to the car. He opened the door and forced Stuart to pick her up and bring her inside. The future singer looked at the girl, soon realizing who she was. That was Yoko; the girl who was there the day of the accident. He couldn't stand to see her face as bloody as it was. Her once pale, gentle face was now covered in red cuts. Murdoc didn't seem to care.

Climbing up the stairs up to the apartment was quite painful for Stuart. Although the girl wasn't extremely heavy, his legs were still weak. Murdoc unlocked the dark door and stepped inside with Stuart right behind him. "Pu' the kid on the sofa." Murdoc pointed to an unattractive yellow couch. Yoko was set down gently. Before getting a bottle of tequila, he turned to see the damage on Yoko's face. The cuts were quite noticeable. "Hey, facheache, get me a paper towel!" he screeched. Stuart pulled himself away from the sight of the keyboard on the floor that he wanted to play so badly. Murdoc was soon wiping off Yoko's stained face. It wasn't something he would normally do, but this kid had been living with him for almost two years, so he slightly cared about her.

Stuart's mind drifted back to the keyboard that was in the main room of the small apartment. He wandered over to look at it some more. It was an old Casio, kind of like the one he had as a kid. Praying that it had batteries, the curious twenty year old turned it on. The little red light by the power button flicked on. He smiled and started to play a random tune. The sudden sound made Murdoc turn around. "Stop that music!" he screamed. Stuart dropped the keyboard. "Listen, dullard. You're gonna be in my band, awright? Singer and keyboardist. Got it?" Murdoc was very straightforward. Stuart, still confused, just slowly nodded his head. "Oh, an' your new name is 2D. Ya know, like those two dents in your face. Sounds like a name a kid like you would have." The newly christened 2D was happier than ever, now that he knew what was happening. Murdoc's world famous band was now one more step closer to being formed.

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YOKO'S POV

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"Oh dear God…" I must have mumbled. I had no idea where I was. Once I felt my surroundings, I knew exactly where I was. "Ah, look who decided to wake up." said a familiar voice. I shot up. "Murdoc, what happened to Stu?" I screamed. All of the memories rushed back to me. Stuart was probably dead or even more of a vegetable now. "Who's Stu?" Murdoc asked with a smug look on his face. "Don't play stupid with me." I scowled. "He's no' Stu anymore. Meet our new frontman, 2D." Murdoc flourished his hand and pointed at 2D with his bony finger. 2D looked horrible. He had no eyes and his face was bruised. "Stuart…" I blinked a few times. Murdoc interrupted the moment, as usual. "Yeah, did I mention we're movin?" I looked at him like he was crazy. "We're moving?" I yelped. "Yep. I go' this huge mansion named Kong Studios for dir' cheap. It's got a graveyard and zombies. The ol' owners were scared to death, so I barely needed to pay for anything!" Murdoc kept on fantasizing about this place, while I just went on and packed my stuff. This couldn't get any better or worse.


	5. The British Hong Kong

Hey, party people. Hope ya like this chapter. Thanks for the reviews, they mean a lot. Oh, and as a little side note, the song where Yoko plays her guitar was inspired by the D-Sides song Hong Kong. Listen to it while reading those few paragraphs. It's... amazing. Wow. Enjoy. I marked the place with an * of where you should start playing the song, if you choose to... I also ended the part with an *. I also didn't read this, so there's probably some errors. Sorry. ^^;

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It had gotten to the point that I had back pains from lifting the countless boxes of Murdoc's crap into the Astra. Moving day was finally here, and Murdoc had put it out there very clearly that he wasn't lifting a finger. "Supervising", that's what he said his job was. Beads of sweat were drifting down my forehead as I lifted the last box (With the help of 2D) into the old sedan. The car doors and trunk were barely capable of being closed. I counted the boxes before closing everything up. Murdoc had about twenty boxes. 2D and I had three. Murdoc had already taken about ten of the boxes to our new residency the night before while on the way to the bar. 2D and I had spent the day watching his new zombie films before packing. It was currently 8:00 PM on the dot. "Come 'un, we need to ge' up there and move in!" Murdoc yelled from the front door to the building. I sighed while 2D and I slipped into the packed car. The sinister bassist soon joined us as we drove for four hours to Essex.

It was midnight when we first arrived in Essex. "Murdoc, where is this place actually?" I asked. I was extremely tired. I would have been in bed by now anyway. "Tha' place on the hill." Murdoc drowsily pointed. What I saw frightened me. There was a large mansion on a hill, complete with a graveyard and everything. "Seriously?" 2D asked. The house on the hill approached rapidly, and soon we were climbing up the distressed driveway of Kong Studios. I closed my eyes until the car stopped. When I opened my eyes, we were in a pitch black car park. "2D, Murdoc, where are yew?" I asked tentatively. "I-I'm right 'ere, luv." 2D responded. "Oi, come on, you two need to unload all of this!" Murdoc screeched. "No' now! I need to go ta sleep!" I screeched right back at him. I could feel him breathing into my face as he turned around from the driver's seat. "Then we'll jus' sleep in the car." Murdoc replied. "Fine." With that, I fell asleep listening to Murdoc snoring and an odd moaning noise.

*My eyes felt soggy when I woke up. Everything around me was still dark. It was only 1 AM, much to my despair. I grunted. I felt around for a flashlight. I knew I had seen one lying somewhere in there earlier. I felt around everywhere until my hand gripped onto a black metal flashlight. I opened the car door as slowly as possible and slipped out into the night, hoping to get a glimpse of something special.

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AUTHOR'S POV

What Yoko didn't know was that 2D was up the minute she had made a noise. His keen hearing had sensed that something was moving. He kept his eyes closed in fear of being seen. He saw her slip out of the car and into the car park. 2D's instinct told him to go after her. He had seen the things that were leaking out of the ground in the graveyard; things that Yoko should have to see. He crept out quickly and followed the light provided by the flashlight. It went out of the car park and zigzagged multiple times. Yoko had finally found a stopping place; it was a place with a perfect view of the lighted up town of Essex. Yoko sat in the swaying grass with an acoustic guitar that she had brought along. She stared at it for a while before playing a soothing melody. It was something of a Japanese lullaby. 2D's foot tapped along to the beat. Yoko sang so softly that she couldn't even hear herself. She heard footsteps behind her. The guitar chords abruptly stopped as she turned around to meet 2D. "Don' stop." He said with a toothy grin. Yoko greeted his smile and patted a spot on the ground for him to sit. The pair sat there, guitar chords humming and fingers tapping the beat. Soon, Yoko found her head resting on 2D's shoulder. As she ended her soothing hymn, 2D was filled with questions. "Where'd ya 'ear tha' from?" he asked. "I-I really don' know. It's a tune that's always been in my head, I suppose. I' reminds me of my mum, or at least what I knew of 'er." she responded. "My mum lef' me when I was three. She wen' back to Japan, where she came from. I've always fel' like nobody's loved me since she lef'." 2D saw a tear go down her cheek. He took her shoulders in his hands. "Yoko, Murdoc and I'll love ya. We'll be a grea' band, and we'll be a big family." His voiced was reassuring for the young and confused girl. "I-I'm no' sure 'bout Muds…" The girl doubted Murdoc even cared for her. "If Muds don't love ya, then why 'as he let ya stay with 'im for the pas' two years?" 2D said in his soothing voice. Yoko snorted. "Now, come un, it's no' safe ou' 'ere." 2D got up and left Yoko on her perch. After staying there for a few more minutes, she worked her way back to the carpark. 2D was asleep like nothing ever happened. The only thing different was that a smile adorned his face.*

Morning came a little too quickly to Kong Studios that day. The morning brought many things, but it mostly consisted of zombie body parts, screaming, and unpacking boxes. As the threesome entered Kong for the first time, they encountered quite a few zombies, which were quickly executed with the work of Murdoc's pistol. The boxes were moved in, TVs were hooked up and more furniture was ordered. Kong was on the way to becoming somewhat of a home.

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YOKO'S POV

We were finally moved into Kong Studios. The place was humungous. I knew I would never be able to see all of the rooms there. The minute we were finished unpacking, I had noticed that Murdoc had started packing again. I spotted him in the main living room closing a suitcase. "Muds, wha' are ya doin?" I asked. "Goin to the States to find a drummer." He responded. This didn't sound good. I knew it. Murdoc left later that day, and I still had a very bad feeling that Murdoc wasn't going to find this drummer in a nice way.

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Dun Dun DUuUn! The suspense! Here comes Russ!


	6. Travelling on the Ghost Train

Hallo! Sorry I didn't update this yesterday. I was in no mood. :3

I made the whole story in Author's POV, too.

Next chapter will be about Paula. That incident may span two chapters, not sure yet. I know I want Paula and Yoko to have a big fight, though. DRAMA TIME!

So yeah, enjoy the chapter. It's Russel time!

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AUTHOR'S POV

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Murdoc Niccals was perched in his cheap hotel room in New York City. Keys were clacking on his laptop keyboard as he searched for one man: Russel Hobbs. He had searched every web domain possible. He was nowhere to be found in the USA. Murdoc cursed under his breath. He didn't have time for this. He had spent a decent amount of money on a plane ticket for no reason at all. The steaming bassist took the already broken lamp that occupied the nightstand next to him and threw it into the wall. The glass base shattered and glass shards fell to the ground. Murdoc decided to search the interwebs one more time. He knew that Russel was able to summon spirits or something. "Tha' must've made some newspaper headlines…" he mumbled. Murdoc's thoughts gave him an idea. He looked for newspaper records online, and sure enough, he found out about Russel's fate. He now lived in England and worked at Big Rick Black's Record Shack. Murdoc sighed and lit a Lucky Lung. So much for his plan. As he took a long drag, his cellphone rang. He grunted and picked it up. "Wot?" he answered. "M-Muds? Are ya there?" asked a familiar voice. "Wotdaya want, Yoko-girl?" Murdoc softened his tone a bit. He genuinely cared about Yoko, but he would never admit to it. "2D an' I wrote sum songs, an' I was wonderin' if we could go into the studio and try to record some stuff?" the girl said slowly. "Yew sound nervous, luv. Wot's the matta?" Murdoc avoided the question. "I suppose it's the zombies tha' try to get in 'ere." Yoko admitted. "Deal with i'. Yew can record the tracks too, jus' make sure they're decent." Murdoc hung up the phone and packed his bags. He was going to Big Rick Black's Record Shack.

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Back in the UK, Yoko and 2D had officially started recording the song they had come up with. They had titled the song "Ghost Train". 2D was in the booth. "Awright, just say Ghost Train, and that'll be it for tha' loop. I'll do backing vocals." Yoko wrote on a whiteboard. 2D nodded, and Yoko turned on the equipment. Even though Yoko couldn't hear it, she knew it would be great. After a few takes, she finally got the perfect loop for the constant repeating of the words "ghost train" that would appear in the song. After recording background vocals and an excellent guitar riff, the track was almost ready to go. Yoko slipped out of the recording studio to listen to the ending guitar riffs that 2D hopefully recorded. "You're sure you go' it this time?" Yoko asked with a hand on her hip. 2D gave her his goofy, toothless smile and nodded. Yoko replayed it. "Tha' sounds excellent." 2D complimented. Yoko blushed slightly. "Is i' really tha' good?" she asked. "Why wouldn't i' be?" he replied. 2D had become much less strained since Murdoc left on his little "adventure". He had been gone for a few days now, and that allowed us to have some fun and settle into Kong a bit more. "2D, could you order some takeout while I finish mixing what we have?" the young guitarist asked. 2D nodded and went to the nearest phone.

Yoko knew a little bit about mixing music. She had seen her father do it a few times, but he usually ended up cursing at the computers in the process. After combining all of the tapes together onto on track, it sounded good. "It would sound even better if we had a whole band…" she thought. "2D!" she called. 2D came into the room, tripping over a cord. "Are you awright?" Yoko asked while trying not to laugh. "Yeah… I fink so. Food's comin in a few minutes." he said as he got up. "Ok. I finished the mix tape. Listen." Yoko handed the headphones over to 2D and played what was the beginning of Ghost Train. "Muds'll like i'. It's great." he exclaimed. 2D shook the headphones off of his head and they smoothly landed into his lap. A minute later, a distant ringing sound could be heard. "Tha' must be the food." 2D said to himself. He took the lift to the first story with Yoko in tow. He opened the front door carefully. There wasn't a food delivery boy there, just two bags filled with boxes of Chinese food. "Zombies scared the kid away…." Yoko stated blankly. "Well, we're eatin' free tonight…" 2D mumbled. The pair picked up the bags filled with the takeout cartons and went to the kitchen to feast.

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February fifth, 1998, Murdoc Niccals walked into Big Rick Black's Record Shack. He looked around and realized instantly that this was not the place for him. The Satanist hesitantly walked up to the aging wood counter. A large man stood there with his back turned to the shelves behind him. Hopefully, if Murdoc was in the right place, this man was Russel Hobbs. Murdoc tried his hardest to seem approachable. It wasn't working. "Oi, uhm, do ya, by any chance, have anyfing by The Clash?" The large man turned around. He was huge! His eyes were milky white; his expression was anything but happy. "Eh, I'm pretty sure we do. Just wait here and I'll go check for ya." The man turned around. That indeed was Russel Hobbs. Murdoc acted quickly and took out the abnormally large sack he had crushed up very small so it could fit in his pocket. Before Russel could notice, Murdoc had duct tape on the future drummer's mouth and had him tightly in a sack. Murdoc could barely lift the obese man into the trunk of the car he had stolen. The bassist worked quickly to make sure that he went unnoticed. After the challenge of lifting the kidnapped Mr. Hobbs into the trunk, Murdoc slammed it shut and entered the black sedan. He put the keys in and drove back to his castle in Essex.

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It was midnight at Kong Studios. 2D and Yoko had spent the night watching 2D's zombie films, specifically Driller Killer and Dawn of the Dead. As the credits for Dawn of the Dead rolled across the screen, 2D looked down to see that Yoko had fallen asleep on him. Sometimes, she still looked like the young girl who he had met in Uncle Norm's almost a year ago. Yoko had changed and matured a lot since then. As the blue haired singer watched his "little sister" doze off, a noise could be heard in the carpark. "Ugh, bloody zombies." 2D whispered, annoyed. The singer slipped off of the sofa and went to the carpark. His black orbs looked around the place. There was light in it now after Murdoc had someone install some fixtures. He squinted and looked everywhere. Then, he saw what was making the racket. "Murdoc, wot are yew doin'?" 2D yelled as Murdoc set down an abnormally large sack on the concrete floor. "Eh, tha's our new drummer, faceache!" Murdoc tried to cover up the weirdness of the situation. 2D furrowed his eyebrows. Murdoc picked up the large sack and yelled at 2D to help. The men carried the contained drummer all the way back up to the living room where Yoko was. "When did she fall asleep?" Murdoc accidently said. "Dunno. Half hour ago. Why?" 2D questioned. "Eh, no reason. Now, jus' open the sack, Dullard." Murdoc prompted. 2D untied the heavy string that held the bag shut, and out rolled Russel Hobbs. His eyes were wide. He got up and grabbed Murdoc by the collar of his shirt. "Why the heck did you bring me here?" the man boomed. Yoko's eyes fluttered open at the loud noise. She rubbed her eyes and watched what was going on. "Put him down." The young girl said firmly. Russel dropped Murdoc to the floor. "Uh… you mus' be our new drummer Murdoc found…" Yoko didn't know what to say next. The large man was looking at her blankly. "And, uh, my name is Yoko, an' that's 2D…" Yoko pointed a shaky finger at 2D. The man's look softened. "Well, I'm Russel. Russel Hobbs. Nice to meet you. I really don't think I should stayin' here, though…" he paused. "What kind of music do you do?" he asked. "Well, I eh, have a tape of somefing we've been workin' on. Follow me to the Studio…" Yoko shuffled to the Studio with Russel behind her. 2D was left behind to tend to Murdoc, a task that he didn't particularly care for. As Yoko and Russel entered the Studio, Yoko immediately turned on the "Ghost Train" tape. As 2D's soothing voice filled the speakers and the guitar riffs moved along, Yoko saw Russel tapping his foot. The track ended. It was time for the verdict. "It's different." Russel stated. Yoko held her breath. "I like it. I guess I'll stay with ya." Yoko jumped up and down. "Thank you Russel!" she said joyfully. The energy of the teen girl made Russ smile. He had no idea what he had gotten himself into.


	7. She's Hiding Behind the Glasses

Hi guys. I know I didn't upload yesterday, but this chapter is longer than usual! Writing about the whole Paula incident is quite fun! XD Enjoy the chapter.

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YOKO'S POV

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I woke up in my lime green room. I don't remember who took me there. The only events I remembered were Russel arriving and agreeing to stay and Murdoc hearing "Ghost Train" for the first time. Murdoc said he would record the bassline after I went to sleep or something. I wasn't really sure. All I knew now was that I was in my own room, in my own bed. I checked my digital clock. It read 9:30. That was unusually late. I usually woke up early and went to pester Murdoc in his room. I grunted. He would still be asleep by now. I picked myself up out of bed and stumbled over to my dresser. I pulled out my Mr. T t-shirt and some jeans and slipped out of my nightclothes. After changing into new clothes, I trotted downstairs to room six; Murdoc's room. I opened the door without warning. What I saw was definitely something different.

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AUTHOR'S POV

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Neither Murdoc nor his belongings were anywhere to be found. The room was completely empty and there was no sign of the Satanist. Disturbed, Yoko ran off to 2D's room. She knew that he would know nothing, though. She really just wanted to see her "older brother". She knocked on 2D's door before going in. She heard a loud thud, and the door opened with 2D rubbing his head. He was only in his boxers. "Oh, hey Yoko. You're up pretty late." he said with a yawn. "2D, do yew know wha's happened to Muds?" she asked urgently. 2D stared at her. "Do yew really want ta know?" he furrowed his eyebrows. "Oh no…" Yoko mumbled. "Eh, go down ta the car park. You'll figure i' out…" Yoko did as she was told and went downstairs to the car park. This image was even worse than Murdoc's empty room. A trashy, old, Winnebago greeted Yoko. "Oh dear God…" she whispered. Hesitantly, the guitarist shuffled over to the monster that was now Murdoc's home. She turned her head away when she opened the door, trying not to see anything that she wasn't supposed to. However, there was no noise except Murdoc's snoring. Relieved, Yoko walked in. The place smelled terrible and old. She proceeded to find the bedroom. The bed was circular in shape and had purple sheets. With a smirk, Yoko pounced on the bassist. "Oi! For the love of Sweet Satan, Yoko-girl, wot are yew doin?" Murdoc screamed. "We need to go an' work on "Ghost Train!" the girl pleaded. Murdoc couldn't argue with that face, so he woke up and exited the Winnebago, still clad in only his underwear.

2D was still sitting in his bedroom, clicking away on his laptop. He felt as if his life was empty without someone to love. Of course, he had little Yoko, but it wasn't the same as being in a relationship. Stu-Pot's blue hair had gotten him a lot of attention from girls when he was a teen. He had high hopes that it would still draw as much attention now. 2D had found an online dating site and made a profile. He checked every five minutes to see if he had any new matches. There were always none. About thirty minutes later, the computer dinged and 2D closed his game of Pong to see his matches. Only one girl appeared on the screen. He pointed his cursor at her picture and clicked on it. Her profile revealed that her name was Paula. She was twenty three and had black hair. She loved makeup, sunglasses and playing her guitar. 2D looked at some of the pictures and soon figured out that he was lovestruck. In his eyes, she was simply gorgeous. He looked at her contact information right away and picked up the phone in his room to give her a call. The phone rang once… twice… three times. 2D was discouraged until someone picked up on the fourth ring. "'Ello?" she said in a deeper voice. "Uhm, 'ello…. eh, I'm 2—Stuart Pot… an' I found ya on …. I was wonderin if you'd like ta, well, go ou' sometime?" he asked. The poor lad was stuttering and shaking. He waited eagerly for her reply. "Sure, I'd love ta! I'll take a look at your profile an' call ya back." She hung up. 2D smiled his signature toothy smile and put the phone back in the receiver. The blue haired man sat on his bed and listened to The Clash while waiting impatiently for Paula to call back. Sure enough, the phone was ringing and 2D muted the volume on his stereo. "E-ello?" he answered. "E'llo Stu. It's Paula. 'Ow about we meet at your place today at noon?" she asked cheerfully. "Awright, that'd be great! Bye!" 2D almost squealed. She didn't even say goodbye.

Yoko, Murdoc and Russel were all crowded in the kitchen eating when 2D came down. He was cleaned up nicely. He wore a blue button down shirt and black jeans. He had made an effort to comb his hair, but it never cooperated, so it was useless. "Well, Faceache, yew clean up nice." Murdoc cocked an eyebrow. "Fanks!" 2D said with much excitement. "2D, are yew goin out?" Yoko asked. "Eh, well, a girl is comin 'ere… I jus' met 'er an'…" 2D was cut off my Murdoc's burst of laughter. Even though it was potentially humiliating, 2D just kept on smiling and waiting for Paula. It was 12:30. Still no sign of Paula. 2D waited on the steps on Kong Studios until 12:45. A beat up old car pulled in and out stepped the woman of 2D's dreams. Her usually unkept black hair was in a loose ponytail. She wore a fedora, a revealing shirt, a miniskirt, fishnet stockings and high boots. Sporty sunglasses adorned her eyes. Her lips were stained a blood-like color. "'Ello, Stu." she said. 2D was mesmerized. "H-hi." He said in return. 2D escorted her into Kong. Paula looked around everywhere, making odd and confused faces. "Well, heh, tha's Kong for ya!" 2D laughed. Paula didn't say anything. To break the silence, 2D asked about music. "So I read tha' yew play guitar. Do yew fink tha' maybe you'd want to join our band?" Paula stopped walking. "I'd love tha'!" she beamed. 2D breathed a sigh of relief. "I'll need to take i' up wif our bassist first, though." The two walked into the kitchen to Murdoc's ranting on how bad music is these days. Murdoc turned around and looked at Paula up and down. "Hello…" Murdoc purred. Paula giggled. "Ehm, Murdoc, Russ, Yoko, this is my girlfriend, Paula. She flashed a fake smile. "She also plays guitar…." 2D looked at Murdoc. "I'd love to be in your band. I 'eard yew need another guitarist?" she directed the question at Murdoc with a smirk. "Well, luv, you'd be workin' under the direction of Yoko over 'ere. I suppose you'll be fine." Paula jumped up and down, her boots clacking on the linoleum floor. "I 'ave my guitar in my car, if yew want to see what I can do." Paula winked at Murdoc. "Awright, bring it in!" 2D chirped. Paula soon got her guitar and everyone trudged down to the Studio.

Although Yoko had only been playing the guitar for almost three years, she had previous experience on bass, which made her qualified as lead guitarist, much to Paula's dismay. "Ok, Paula. I want yew ta just go in the booth an' play these riffs." Yoko handed over the secondary guitar part for "Ghost Train". Paula snorted and sauntered into the booth. She plugged her guitar into the amp and they started recording. Paula wasn't concentrating on the riffs. Yoko saw her casting her eyes upon Murdoc. 2D was smiling like there was no tomorrow. He must have thought that Paula was looking and smiling at him. The recording was over in a snap, and Yoko nervously replayed it. The riffs, in her eyes, were horrid. Paula stayed in the booth and tried to keep a straight face. The guitar was out of tune; her fingers were messing around everywhere. Paula exited the booth smugly. "Well, luv, you're ok. Good enuf for me. Welcome to the band." The bassist said with little emotion. Paula screamed and jumped up and down some more. I was appalled. "M-Murdoc, can I see yew outsid'?" the younger guitarist asked. Murdoc grunted and followed Yoko into the hallway. "Wot?" he asked, clearly irritated. "Yew don't see how horrible she is?" she complained. "Well, she's good lookin, so why no'?" Yoko just looked at him. "She's 2D girlfriend! Yew shouldn't be flirtin' with 'er!" she shot back. Murdoc flinched a bit. "Since when did yew know about relationships?" Murdoc cocked an eyebrow and smirked. Yoko blushed red with embarrassment and anger. "Well… I know… eh…" Yoko just looked away. Murdoc chuckled and dragged the girl back into the room where Russel was attempting to start a conversation with the secondary guitarist. He was having no luck as he closed his milky white eyes and sighed. 2D was sitting on the couch in the Studio, arm around Paula's shoulder. The black haired woman was giggling uncontrollably. Yoko rolled her eyes. Russel walked out of the room, obviously bored. Murdoc soon followed, leaving Yoko in an awkward position. "Stu, could you go get me a drink or two?" Paula asked in a sickly sweet voice. 2D's face lit up. "O'course, luv! Yoko, do yew wan' anyfink?" Yoko shook her head no and went to go sit on the far side of the couch, away from Paula. Paula cocked an eyebrow in disgust. She truly thought that Yoko was too young to be better than her. "So, 2- I mean, Stuart is your boyfriend?" Yoko casually asked. "Yes. And there's nothing yew can do about it." Paula looked away and snickered. "If yew love Stu so much, than why are yew inta Murdoc?" Paula glared at the girl for the comment. The newer guitarist got up from the couch to grab Yoko by the shirt. Yoko flailed, but Paula's grip was too strong. "If yew even dare say anything to Stuart, or anyone in this dump, you'll pay for i'. Ya hear?" she growled. Yoko was now about three or four feet in the air. "Put… me… down!" Yoko shrieked. Footsteps were coming down the hall. Paula intentionally dropped Yoko on the ground. The sickening sound of the body hitting the floor would be traumatic for anyone else who heard it, but Paula Cracker was different. Paula didn't care about anyone else. She thought that she was the only one that mattered. The door knob to the Studio promptly turned. Paula ran to Yoko's side, trying to cover up the whole incident. 2D walked in with the drinks. "Paula, I…" he turned around and the bottle of vodka soon dropped to the floor. "Yoko! Wot the 'ell happened?" 2D started to panic at the scene while Paula tried to think of a way out of it. "S-She jus' fell ova!" Paula pretended to cry. Yoko was knocked out cold. "Russ! Murdoc!" 2D screamed. Murdoc sauntered into the room. "Wot could yew possibly wan' now, faceache?" He opened his eyes and realized the issue. "Wot did yew do to 'er? Wot did you to my best guitarist?" Murdoc was now screaming. Russel squeezed himself through the door to see what the big crisis was. After identifying that Yoko was injured, the whole crew took the Winnebago to the hospital.

Murdoc was almost caught by the cops twice and was close to hitting an old lady. They didn't even bother parking the Winnie before they entered. Murdoc carried Yoko inside while 2D was following closely behind, making sure that he didn't trip over his shoelaces again. Paula tried to attract as much attention as possible by clutching to 2D's side. Russel was booming in front, pushing anyone who was in the way out. Nurses immediately tended to the young girl. As the other women turned to bring Yoko into the ER, Murdoc attempted to follow, 2D close behind him, as usual. A younger, blonde nurse put her hand up in front of them. "Nobody is allowed back here, sir." she said in an annoyingly sweet voice. He grumbled and went to fill out all of the necessary papers to admit Yoko to the hospital. Murdoc stumbled on one particular question: Name of Legal Guardian. As he went to sit down, Murdoc handed the clipboard to Russel, pointing at the question. Russel's eyebrows went up and he pointed at Murdoc. Murdoc pointed at himself in question, eyes bugging out. Russel nodded. The silent argument was over, leaving Murdoc no choice but to put his name on the Legal Guardian line. It wasn't very fulfilling. Russel, 2D and Murdoc sat in the hospital quietly. Paula had gone home. All they could do was wait.


	8. All Alone

Hi guys. This chapter can get a little depressing, so be warned. The past of Yoko's parents is revealed! The Paula issue will continue next chapter. And, for those of you who review and just say "update", that's not really helpful to me. XD

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AUTHOR'S POV

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After hours of long waiting, the band was allowed to enter Yoko's hospital room. A nurse was guarding the door of the room in the long, cold, white hallway. As the group approached, Murdoc recognized her as the nurse that had held him back earlier that day. It was past midnight, and the bassist wasn't in the mood for any of her sickly sweet crap. "Uhm, Mr. Niccals, may I speak with you for a moment?" she gushed. "Wotdaya want?" he crushed all of the happiness out of her. "Sir, Yoko is in a very delicate mental state now. She seems to be fine, but certain personal questions we asked her sent her into a severe rage, particularly about her mother and childhood. We're continuing to ask these questions until we get an answer, just in case she has a mental disease resulting from this incident." Murdoc was now infuriated. "Why the 'ell are yew askin' 'er the questions, then? Stop askin 'er!" he yelled. The other nurses turned around to look at him. "Sir, we're just trying to…" Murdoc cut the woman off and busted into the room where Russel and 2D were. 2D was sitting on the bed next to the poor guitarist, praying that she would wake up soon. Russel was in a chair on the far side of the room, his milky eyes staring into nowhere. Murdoc slumped into a chair by the bed, resting the side of his face on his hand. "She's movin!" 2D chirped. Everyone else in the room looked up. Yoko's eyelids flickered open, revealing her pale violet eyes. "2D? Wot 'appened?" Yoko asked, dazed. "I'm no' sure, 'lil luv. I found yew on the floor. Paula says yew fell or somefink…" Yoko heard nothing after the word "Paula". The scene had been replaying in her mind. She had been dropped intentionally. The words Paula had said replayed millions of times. She was going to hurt 2D if Yoko did something. Yoko's eyes shut and her head went down. Murdoc got up from his chair.

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YOKO'S POV

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There were constant voices in my head. Some of them sounded like my mother's, some like my father's and some like Murdoc's. I figured it was just a side effect of whatever had happened to me. However, I knew things were going horribly wrong whenever the doctors asked me about my childhood.

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**FLASHBACK**

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Tokyo, Japan, early 1980's. A young woman was in a hospital giving birth to her only child. This is was consequence, not her joy. This was her punishment for going to Vegas. She was only a curious twenty year old girl, looking for fun in the United States. Her relatives had always dreamed of going to the land of opportunity. The woman had spent her money unwisely. Plane tickets, money for gambling and an unexpected wedding: that was it. Her fun had resulted in an unexpected pregnancy. Her family had shunned her out of her home. She had no opportunities anymore. She watched the baby in the doctor's arms. It was a beautiful baby girl with the lightest hair and skin that one could imagine. She was a precious baby, but the woman could not keep her. If she left no trace of the pregnancy behind, she could be loved again. After holding the child just once, she gave it away. As the child was escorted out of the room, a man was outside, watching the woman weep. He was her husband. He walked in tentatively, not sure about the woman's reaction. She looked up. The man, however, looked down in shame. "Why?" the woman asked with a heavy accent. "Why?" she said again. "Luv, please listen ta me. We can live a normal life in Britain. Come with me, and take the kid. Please." The man whispered. He was not a very kind person, but taking care of her and his kid was the least he could do. The woman was shocked. She checked out of the hospital later that day with her husband and child. They scraped up all of their money and got plane tickets to Liverpool, England. They rented a cheap apartment and all was happy for three years. The couple named their child Yoko.

"Why?" the woman said, just as she had three years ago in the Tokyo hospital. She was on the floor, cowering in fear. Her drunken husband had come home in a rage, destroying everything in sight. The only unbroken thing in the one room apartment was a crib. In it was the three year old Yoko. Unaware of what was happening, she picked herself up and leaned on the crib railing. "Shite kudasai suru koto wa arimasen!" the woman screamed. The man's face softened at the sight of his daughter, although not all of his rage was lost. He smacked his wife down, causing her to have a bloody nose. The woman's memories flashed through her head. All of the pleasant memories were gone. She had no choice but to leave or die here. "Nazedesu ka? Why?" she bawled. She was smacked down again before the angry man collapsed onto the floor, too drunk to continue. The woman wept harder and made her decision. She left her once joyful life to go and live in hatred once again in Japan.

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**END FLASHBACK**

AUTHOR'S POV

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Yoko's head flashed back up again. She was panting and sweating. "Why?" she screamed, tears coming out of her eyes. Murdoc jumped and ran to the girl's bed. "Wot's wrong, luv?" Even Murdoc was getting a little panicky. "S-she lef' me… Murdoc… she lef' me when I wos three. I 'ave no one lef'." The girl sobbed quietly. "Yoko-girl, we all love yew!" Murdoc was actually showing some sympathy. Yoko lifted her head up. "W-will you leave me?" she asked. 2D looked at Murdoc. "No, luv, we won't. Neva, eva. Do yew undastand?" Murdoc was being serious. Yoko nodded.

The rest of the day was melancholic. Yoko tried to get all the rest she could; although her mind was more concerned of depicting these long lost memories. They all replayed in her mind steadily. The constant questions she had could be answered by only one man. And that man couldn't be found. The men waited for a doctor to come in and give a diagnosis. Finally, one decided to show up. He was a tall, muscular brunette man. "E'llo Mr. Niccals. You're the legal guardian of little Yoko, correct?" The doctor was as sweet as the nurse. "Yeah. Wot's the problem with 'er?" The doctor looked puzzled. "Well, Yoko's just got a minor concussion. It appears as if she was dropped a few feet from the ground. Do any of you know anyfing about this?" Murdoc looked to 2D. "My girlfrien' was there when i' happened. I really dun know anyfink." 2D looked at the doctor and shrugged. "Well, she should be fine in a few weeks. Her mental outbursts are most likely memories triggered from her fall. She can come out of the hospital tomorrow morning!" the doctor cheerfully said. Murdoc sighed. "Are all of yew staying the night here?" the doctor asked. "I'll stay wif 'er. Yew an' Russ need some rest." 2D chirped. Murdoc cocked an eyebrow as the doctor walked out. "Don' screw up, Faceache." Murdoc growled as he walked out with Russel behind him.

Yoko didn't wake up at all that night. 2D guarded her bed until he fell into a deep slumber in the uncomfortable hospital chair. The pair slept all night, and were still asleep when Russel and Murdoc came to check Yoko out of the hospital.

"Wake up, Dullard!" Murdoc smacked 2D on the head, waking him up instantly. 2D rubbed his head and got out of the chair. "How was she?" Russel asked. "She jus' slept, really. Nofink interesting." 2D popped two migraine pills into his mouth, swallowing them dry. Shortly after, the same annoying nurse cheerfully walked into the room. "Good morning! Now, looks like little Yoko can be checked out today. You can all jus' go into the waiting room and fill out some papers. She'll be out soon!" the nurse said with a smile. Murdoc scoffed. Everyone filed into the waiting room as Yoko was woken up and checked out. Murdoc was finishing the papers as Yoko stepped out, escorted by the nurse. She was smiling as if nothing had happened. Right after all of the papers were filed, Murdoc lead everyone out of there and back to Kong.

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Sorry if the ending was a little rough, I wanted to get this uploaded. REVIEW PLEASE!


	9. Abuse

Ello, people. This is going to be one of the last Paula chapters. This one's the huge catfight! MEOW! REVIEW AND ENJOY! Oh, and just so you know, I'll take suggestions for this story. I'll give you credit if I use your suggestion, too! Oh, also vote in the poll on my profile and BE HONEST!

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The ride to Kong in the Winnebago was quiet. Nothing was said or heard. Murdoc parked his love shack on wheels in the car park and shooed everyone out. Yoko needed no help going to her room, into her own bed. The hospital beds were quite uncomfortable, as was everything in that awful building. Getting back to her bed was the most comforting thing for the young girl. Now that her family secrets were being revealed to her again, she needed the support of everyone and everything around her. The thoughts of Paula weren't really drifting in the girl's head anymore. There were far too many other important things to think about.

Yoko sat in her bed and watched whatever was on TV. A boring, overly dramatic soap opera flickered on. "Lovely…" she mumbled sarcastically. Within five minutes, the drama was intolerable. She turned off the TV and flopped into her soft pillow. There wasn't anything to do. Absent-mindedly, Yoko slipped out of her bed and wandered Kong until she found her way into her azure haired brother's room.

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YOKO'S POV

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I ran into 2D's room, looking for something to do. He looked up from his magazine and scratched his head. "Hey, Yoko-luv. Shouldn't you be getting' some rest?" he asked. "Bu' I wanna stay 'ere with my bestest buddy!" I pouted. 2D smiled a big toothy grin. "Awright, jus' don't tell Muds or Russ tha' you're in 'ere and no' in bed." he lectured. After sitting and watching TV for a while, I got an idea. "2D, can we play Super Mario Kart?" I tilted my head in question. "Sure. Why d'you like all of these old consoles anyway?" he asked as he plugged in the Super Nintendo from under his bed. "Dunno. I played 'em when I was little. Nofin' else really appeals to me now." I shrugged. I crawled over and plugged in the dusty console, sneezing in the process. I went back to where I was sitting and handed 2D a controller. The game started up without a problem. "Betcha I can beat yew every single time!" I stuck my tongue out. "Oh yeah? We'll see 'bout tha'." The fight was on.

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AUTHOR'S POV

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A few hours and quite a few cans of soda later, Yoko had beat 2D at every track in the game twice. Yoko fell backwards onto the plush carpet, huffing. "Are we done yet?" the tired girl sighed. 2D sighed in defeat. "Fine, yew win!" he threw his controller in the air. It landed right onto his head. "2D! Are you, eh, awright?" Yoko held back giggles. "I fink so…" 2D popped a painkiller into his mouth. Just then, a catchy jingle played. "Oh, hold on…" 2D mumbled. It was his cell phone. He flicked the cell phone out and answered it. "'Ello?" he asked. "Hey, babe. I'm on my way ova' now." Paula said over the phone. "O-ok… bye." He flipped the phone closed and threw it onto the floor. "Who was tha'?" Yoko asked. "Paula. She's comin' ova' in a few." 2D smiled brightly. The memory of Paula sank back into Yoko's head. She stared blankly at the wall. "Is somefink wrong, Yoko-girl?" 2D panicked whenever Yoko even looked upset or sick. "Oh, no, nofing." Yoko stuttered. A pounding was heard at the door. "Faceache, where's the kid!" Murdoc was yelling. Squealing, Yoko ran under 2D's bed. Murdoc kicked the door in, revealing him with a bottle of rum in his hand. "I need the kid for recording! I can't do i' myself, ya know! Is she in 'ere?" 2D cowered on the floor."N-no. I dunno where she is." Murdoc grunted and walked out into the hallway, cursing all the way. Yoko crept out from under the bed to find 2D gone. "2-2D?" she whispered. No response. Yoko laid her head down on the floor. The carpet made her sneeze. She listened for any signs of someone coming for a few minutes until she heard the footsteps of boots and sneakers coming down the concrete hallway. Giggles soon became apparent in the room. Yoko hid herself deeper under the bed as Paula and 2D entered the room. As the two sat on the bed, 2D attempted to bring up a conversation. "Ey, Paula love, can I ask yew somefink?" 2D asked tentatively while scratching his head. "Woteva yew want." Paula put her arms around him. "Paula, I-I'd love i' if yew'd move in wif me." the lovesick man asked quietly. There was a long pause before an audible "Yes" could be heard. Yoko stuck her head out off the bed a bit. She watched 2D and Paula's actions with utter terror in her eyes. A pair of glasses fell to the floor. Yoko stuck her head out a bit more, only to be met by the piercing icy eyes of Paula Cracker. She looked at Yoko like she was a lone puppy. Paula Cracker looked like someone who would kick a puppy. Paula looked away for a moment before attempting to shoo 2D. "2D… do yew 'ave any rum?" she asked with a sultry grin. "Yeah, o'course. I'll go ge' some!" 2D walked out of the room. Paula checked to see when 2D was gone. Yoko's head was still sticking out from under the bed. Paula swung her legs over the side of the bed and hit Yoko square in the face. The girl collapsed onto the floor. Paula laughed maniacally before getting up and looking under the bed. "Oh, you poor thing!" she said in a sickly sweet voice. "Stu's too thick to even realize anyfing, so i' looks like I'll be abusin' yew fer the res' of your life." Yoko cringed. "Stuart… isn't… stupid…" Yoko picked herself up from under the bed. She eased onto her feet to plan her actions. Paula was right there; she could strangle her. Anger was welling up inside the fourteen year old. Without realizing, Yoko reached out and slapped Paula across the face. Paula's face turned red, her left cheek was swelling up. Paula was too shocked to stop Yoko's attacks. The younger guitarist pushed the woman against the wall, pulling her greasy, black hair. The siege on Paula did not last long. Paula crushed her nails into the girl's hand. Her nails soon found her way into the girl's neck. Yoko was gasping for air.

Outside the door stood the one and only Murdoc Niccals. He had seen the whole thing since the singer had left. He decided not to intervene. He let his younger guitarist be abused not because he wanted her to feel pain, but because he wanted to see if she'd fight back. Murdoc's predictions were correct; Yoko had attacked Paula worse than before. He also knew that it was Paula that dropped Yoko. If everything happened according to plan, he could get with Paula and then kick her out of the band. He was finished watching the petty catfight, and he went to go check his stock of rum in the Winnebago.

Paula let Yoko go after twenty seconds. The girl almost fell to the ground once again. The horror was too great for her and she retreated to her own room. Yoko ran down the hallway, fearing the fact that she couldn't tell anyone about this: for her safety and 2D's. She ran to her room and locked the door. She put her hand to her face and felt the blood. She grumbled and went to her bathroom to wash everything. Cuts adorned her neck and hands. The wounds stung when she wiped them off, but it seemed like nothing could hurt anymore. Yoko blinked and looked at herself in the mirror. There stood a pretty girl with platinum blonde hair. Streaks of lilac and grey were strung through it. Her rare violet eyes were the most stunning of her physical features. She was close to six feet tall now. Her fifteenth birthday was coming up soon. She didn't look fifteen the least bit. She still looked like that girl in Uncle Norm's from almost two years ago. She still looked like that bassist in that no named metal band. She was Yoko. The girl sighed and retreated to bed, unable to look at herself anymore.

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Thunder and lightning raged through Kong like it did every single night. This night, however, it was particularly loud and frightening. Yoko tossed and turned in her sleep, visions of her mother popping up every so often. She couldn't take it anymore. She woke up and didn't turn on the light. The girl entered the hallway and walked aimlessly. She passed 2D's room. It was quite loud in there, so she didn't go in. Russel was in the kitchen, eating. He didn't notice her. Yoko found her way into the car park after about thirty minutes of wandering. The Winnebago was quiet and peaceful, which was very unusual. Murdoc hadn't gone to a bar that night. "Murdoc…" Yoko whispered in thought. She knocked on the Winnebago door. It opened a few seconds later with a thud. "Well, looks who's come to visit Uncle Mudsie!" Murdoc said in disgust. "M-may I please stay 'ere tonight?" Yoko asked. Murdoc let out an overly exaggerated sigh, followed by a slight nod. She entered, dragging her pillow along the ground. "Where can I sleep?" she asked. "Well, I-I was jus' about to ge' wasted. Care to join?" he asked casually, ignoring her question. "I'd prefer not." Murdoc rolled his eyes. "Jus' 'ave a seat there then." He pointed to an old couch. Yoko sighed and went to sit. Murdoc went over to his bar to pull out a bottle of rum. It opened with a pop, and Murdoc drank it all down within seconds. He went to sit down on his tearing recliner. He propped his feet up and sighed gently. "D'yknow, yo're probably the toughest lil' girl I've seen?" Murdoc slipped out. "Huh?" she asked. Murdoc realized what he had said. "Oh, nofing. So, I, eh, 'eard yew like The Clash?" "Oh, don' even ge' me started." Yoko smiled.

Two A.M., Kong Studios. Murdoc and Yoko were still babbling on about The Clash, among other things. By three A.M., they were both sound asleep; Murdoc in his recliner and Yoko on the old couch. All became quiet in Kong Studios that morning. Even the thunder eased up a bit. Yoko woke up early to go and eat the breakfast that Russel made every morning. She finished her plate promptly. She also took the leftovers and arranged them onto the plate. Yoko wandered over to the Winnie, knocked at the door and dropped off the plate. Murdoc opened the door fifteen minutes later, smirked, and ate his breakfast.

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Shout out to Graffiti-Tricks! I got an idea from her review! I made Muds know what's going on! It's apart of his EPIC MASTER AWESOME DEVIOUS PLAN! Bwahaha, thanks for reading.


	10. That Kid in the Radio Helmet

Ahh, we've made it to ten chapters! I'm so happy! A huge shout out to Magicalgirl23, she's given me tons of idea for this story that I couldn't have even thought about on my own! This chapter unveils the one and only Noodle! And Paula is gone! w00tness! So, ha, yeah, enjoy.

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Yoko was in her room, silently playing her Nintendo 64. Paula hadn't bothered her in days, only because she stayed locked in her room. Murdoc would come knocking every once in a while, but not even he had luck getting Yoko to come out. She still was shocked to realize that 2D had wasted two months of his time on Paula. The girl was utterly terrified of what would happen if Paula saw her. Yoko was on the final level of the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. It was what had kept her occupied for the past three days. A soft knock was heard at the door. "Yoko-girl, why are yew stayin' in there all day? Come ou'!" 2D whispered through the crack of the door. Yoko paused her game, but said nothing. Slowly, she crawled and looked under the door. Her eyes met with 2D's black ones. "I knew yew were in there!" he laughed. Yoko shook her head no, and went back to her game. Defeated, 2D left and went down the hallway to his room. Yoko sighed and unlocked her door. She looked to see if anyone was there. The coast was clear. She travelled through the halls of Kong until she found Russel. She attacked him with a large bear hug. "Hey, Yoko-girl! Haven't seen ya in a while. What's up?" Russel returned the hug. "Well, I've just been in my room the past few days, and I've been thinking about some things." she said before turning into the bathroom. "I've gotta go, I'll be ou' in a sec." Yoko said with a smile. She made her way into the graffiti stained bathroom that looked more like a public restroom. Before she turned to go into Stall #4, a strange noise became apparent in Stall #3. Yoko tilted her head in confusion, approaching the unlocked door carefully. She pushed it open to reveal a naked Murdoc and Paula. Yoko's jaw dropped. "Oi, Yoko, ge' out o' here!" Murdoc shooed her. Paula looked completely violated; her skin was turning redder and redder in anger. Yoko felt utterly disturbed, causing her to puke in the next stall over and run out to Russel. She walked slowly out of the room, eyes staring into space. "A-are ya ok?" Russ asked. Yoko shook her head and pointed into the bathroom. With a sigh, Russel went in. More screaming was heard, and a deathly cracking noise made Yoko cringe. Paula emerged from the room, clad in only her underwear. "I hate you and that green skinned scumbag." she said. "You're the scumbag. Ge' outta 'ere." Yoko glared at the angered woman. Her nostrils were flaring out like a hungry pig's. Paula stomped out of Kong Studio and Yoko was safe for the first time in two months. She breathed deeply before getting up and entering the bathroom again. She saw Murdoc, on the floor, nose bleeding, and Russel, standing above him, huffing like an angry bull. "Russel, please don't hurt him anymore!" Yoko yelled. The drummer mumbled an inaudible complaint before storming out of the bathroom to go and eat. Murdoc looked like a lifeless, dark figure on the floor. Yoko took pity on the older man who had been somewhat taking care of her for the past few years. "Muds, are you awright?" Yoko asked quietly. "I think Lards broke my nose a few more times, tha's it. I don' need your help', lil' luv." Murdoc proceeded to get up from his crippled state on the ground. His whole face was covered in blood. His back cracked as he stood, causing him to curse loudly. "Murdoc! Come 'un, I'm takin yew to the Winnebago. You're no' allowed outta there until you're betta, you hear!" Yoko lectured him like his mother would have as she grabbed his hand and gently took him to his trashy RV.

"Murdoc! Stay in the chair!" the girl screamed. The injured man sauntered back over to his chair, grumbling. He had no chance of trying to sneak out of his recliner to get any kind of alcoholic beverage. Yoko could watch him out of the corner of her eye. As she prepared bandages for his nose, she couldn't help but think that she was the only one who would care for the Satanist. Brushing it off, she approached Murdoc to clean his face and care for his broken nose. "Ya know, luv, I can take care of this myself." he grunted. "Leaving it uncovered isn't takin' care of 'i." Yoko said back. The older man grumbled again. After a few minutes of careful handiwork, Murdoc's nose was now covered in white bandages and there were no red spots adorning his face. Before the girl turned to leave, Murdoc had another request. "Oi, luv, could ya ge' me my rum and some Tylenol?" he screeched. Sighing, Yoko got both items and turned to leave once again. Murdoc opened the bottle of rum and swallowed the pill. "Tha's not good for yew, ya know." Yoko said as she opened the door to leave. "Yeah, yeah. Now sod off." he shooed her away for the second time that day. The guitarist left Murdoc to himself. "Thank yew." The man mumbled after the door closed.

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"'D, man, she was usin' you! You're better off now!" Russel's voice was booming from inside 2D's room. "She wasn't! I' was Murdoc's fault!" he yelled back. 2D thrust his head into his pillow, trying to nurse the tears that were leaking out of his eyes. He knew that Paula had lied to him. He was just a pawn in her scheme, whatever it was. 2D just couldn't face the harsh reality that Paula was a good-for-nothing con artist. He still had feelings for her, but after what she had done, his heart had broken in half. He thought what they had been special. This incident made him discover that she didn't even remotely care about him. "Man, you're ridiculous." Russel stormed out of the room, his mind filled with too many thoughts. As he stomped down the hall to go work in his taxidermy project, he bumped into the only guitarist in Kong. "I told 'D 'bout Paula. He ain't takin' it too good." the man sighed. "I-I'll talk to 'im." the girl said confidently. She knew that she could perk up her favorite azure haired singer no matter what.

2D sat in his room, silently crying. The harsh reality had already set in. He popped another three painkillers into his mouth. These pills brought the grand pill count up to ten. He had probably overdosed by now, he thought. In fact, the man hoped he had overdosed. He just wanted to fall away from life. He didn't have Paula anymore, and that alone was devastating to him. Before he was about to drift off, he heard a knock at his door. He grunted, ignoring it. He didn't want to be near anyone. Another knock came, and he moaned. Even the slightest noise sounded like a boulder smashing on the floor. "2D…" a soft, muffled voice asked. He gave no response. "2D, I'm coming in." the soft voice announced. Without warning, the door opened and Yoko saw 2D lying on his bed in deep pain. "2D!" the voice screamed. Things were appearing blurry in 2D's eyes. He looked up, dazed. Yoko ran to the bed. "2D, can yew hear me?" The girl tried to stay calm, but her voice still shook rapidly. 2D's pulse got faster as his head plummeted onto his pillow, causing him to pass out. Everything else around him was fogged.

"2D, are yew awake?" A girl's shadow quickly came into view as Stuart Pot woke up from his slumber. "Y-Yoko? Is tha' yew?" he mumbled. Everything around him was now slightly clearer, but his head ached horribly. "Yeah, come on, wake up." she prompted. 2D sat up and looked at the girl. Her eyes were teary; her usually pale face was a light pinkish shade. "2D, she lef' yew for a reason. She didn't love yew. If 'i makes yew feel any betta, she didn't love Murdoc, either." Yoko told him. "Yes, she did. I loved 'er. She loved me." He looked down. "Woul' someone who loved yew do this to me?" the girl asked. Confused, 2D furrowed his eyebrows as Yoko lifted her hair up to reveal the deep fingernail lacerations in her neck. "S-She did tha' to yew?" 2D looked completely shocked. The guitarist put her hair down and showed him the cuts in her hand. The singer's facial expression turned from sadness to shock and anger. "How could she do that to her?" he thought. "Why didn't yew tell me 'bout i'?" he said, his eyes becoming narrower. "S-She told me tha' if I did, she'd hurt yew." Yoko replied, on the verge of tears. "Yoko, yew shoulda told me tha' regardless o' wot she said!" the blue haired man was getting slightly angry. "Yew can't have people do tha' to yew!" he continued. There was a silence that seemed to last an eternity. "Then why did yew le' Paula do i' to yew?" Yoko asked quietly, tears running down her cheeks. She was right. "She used yew, 2D. Yew didn't see 'ow she treated yew?" The girl was now yelling. Before she could say any more, 2D engulfed her into a hug. "She's gone now."

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The rest of the day was filled with silence, until Murdoc called Yoko to the Winnebago through Kong's intercom system. Yoko trudged into the carpark, trying to avoid any other drama that day. She walked into the Winnie without knocking. "Wot?" she asked, annoyed. "Oi! Don' talk ta me lik' tha!" the older man snarled. He was sitting on the couch in his underwear, writing something on a coffee stained sheet of notebook paper. "Anyhow, I was writin' up a' ad for the paper for a new guitarist. Yew'n Faceache need to go an' deliver i' to whereeva the paper is made. Go' 'i?" he asked. Yoko had no way out of it. "Fine." she said. "Is i your time'o the month or something?" he jokingly asked. Yoko's face grew bright red. She snatched the paper out of his hand and gathered 2D to escort her.

The pair made it in and out of the publishing center fast. The ad was printed in the following day's paper. It said something along the lines of "Guitarist wanted for world domination: no hippies, GSOH required." There was no response for a few days, and tension was building up inside everyone. The men decided to go to a bar for the night, leaving Yoko with some time for herself. Russel had given the girl a list of things she could and could not do. The "can not" list was considerably longer and larger than the "can" list. As Murdoc exited Kong, he whispered to the girl. "Don't screw up, luv." causing the girl to slam the door.

YOKO'S POV

Kong is quite a big place, but with nobody inside of it at night, it can get kind of creepy. I wandered the halls and took a look at some empty rooms. There really was nothing interesting. I ended up being bored out of my mind, so I looked on the list of things I could do. "Numba one, watch TV." I said aloud. "Tha' works." I wandered downstairs and turned on the television. The news was the only thing watchable. After watching the same repetitive stories, I turned the TV off. I checked the time; 8:30 PM. I sighed. "There's nofin' to do here!" I screamed. The echo sounded pretty epic, so I screamed again. "Heeeelllloooo!" I chuckled. I continued to scream into the depths of Kong until the doorbell rang. Cautiously, I went and answered it. Nobody was there, just a ten foot Fed-Ex crate with Japanese markings on the outside. I cocked an eyebrow. This seemed pretty suspicious. I put my ear to the box and heard breathing. Seeing that something was living inside, I steered the box inside and placed it in the middle of the living room. I had no idea that our second guitarist would pop out.

AUTHOR'S POV

The crate was carefully maneuvered into the living room. Yoko looked on top of it and unsecured the top. Slowly, she opened up the crate. She stepped back and screamed when a small girl jumped out of the crate, doing a karate kick high in the air and strumming a Les Paul at the same time. Yoko fell on her bottom, astonished at the contents of the crate. The young girl looked at her; eyes filled with so many questions. A warmth surged through Yoko's veins. The girl's energy surged throughout the room. She seemed so warm and happy. "What's your name, luv?" Yoko asked, smiling. "NOODLE!" the girl screamed. "Well, tha's an odd name, Noodle. Do yew play guitar?" Yoko continued. The girl had a puzzled expression on her face. "Watashi wa rikai shite inai, Ane." Noodle said. Yoko knew exactly what she meant: the girl spoke no English, and she thought that Yoko was her sister. "Anata wa eigo o rikai shite inai nodesu ka?" Yoko asked. Noodle looked around for a second before screaming "HAI!" Yoko nodded and smiled before asking more questions. "Anata wa gitā o hiku ka?" Noodle answered the question with a loud and proud guitar riff. The tune was a crossover between J-Rock and old American rock. This girl was brilliant. "I think we've found our new guitarist." Yoko whispered. "Ikutsu ka no pokkī o go kibōdesuga dekimasu ka?" Yoko asked. Noodle shook her head rapidly and Yoko went off to the kitchen to get young Noodle a box of strawberry Pocky. "Noodle, koko de matte te kudasai. Watashi-tachi no bando no rīdā o yobidasu hitsuyō ga arimasu." Yoko said. Noodle attempted talking, but her face was stuffed with Pocky, so nodding yes was the only option. Yoko found the phone in the kitchen and called Murdoc. After a few rings, there was no answer. Sighing, she dialed Russel's number. He answered in an instant. "Is anythin' wrong, Yoko-girl?" He was immediately concerned. "Eh, well, we 'ave our guitarist… here… with me right now. I, eh, think yew guys need to come 'ome. I can explain it better 'ere." Russel's breathing was the only thing heard on the phone. "Yeah, we'll be home ASAP…" Russel mumbled and hung up. Noodle looked over, the antennas on her radio helmet shaking. "Watashi wa anata no herumetto no yōna." Yoko said. "Arigato! Anata no namae wa nanidesu ka, Ane?" she replied. "Yoko. My name is Yoko." The girl said while pointing to herself. "Namae… name… Yoko! Yoko-sama Ane!" she screamed. "Good girl!" Yoko patted Noodle on the head before turning to see the door open. The three men opened the door and stepped inside. "Yoko, where's this freakin' guitarist?" Murdoc complained. He had a headache and was close to being drunk. Noodle's head perked up from the couch. "Eh, she' right there. Little Japanese girl. She's adorable!" Noodle skipped out from her perch on the couch, her face filled with Pocky crumbs. "Aww, look a' 'er, Muds, she is adorable!" 2D squealed. Murdoc sighed. "This is seriously wha' I get for a secondary guitarist!" he yelled. Before he could say any more, Noodle picked up her guitar and played the same riff she had played for Yoko. "You're kidding…" Russel whispered. "Noodle good!" she screamed. Yoko patted her head again and smiled innocently. "Kore wa, Murdoc, sono 2D, sore wa Russel." Yoko pointed at each of them. "M-Murdocu..Murdoc-sama!" Noodle went up and hugged the Satanist, who resented at first, but he too felt the happy energy little Noodle gave off. He gave her a small hug before she moved onto 2D. "2D!" she yelled. 2D scooped her up into his arms, laughing. Noodle then moved onto Russel. "Russelru.. Russ… Russel!" she screamed again, and Russel gently hugged her. "Wot kind o' gibberish is tha' rugrat speakin?" Murdoc asked, rubbing his chin. "It's Japanese, no' jibberish." Yoko corrected. "Yew know i', too?" 2D asked. "Yeah. Learned i' when I was littler." Yoko brushed it off, not wanting to talk about it. "So, is she a keeper?" she asked. "Fine. Only because she can play guitar so well. That is the only reason!" Murdoc said. The Gorillaz were finally complete.

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Did you guys like it? R&R please, this chapter took me two days and it better be good. It was the hardest chapter to write!


	11. What's Wrong with Me?

**First off, I'm sorry for the mini hiatus**. I was on vacation and I was really uninspired to write. Now that I'm home, I was able to finish this today! It's the longest chapter yet! 3,570 words, w00t w00t! I hope you guys like this chapter, it reveals a lot. And Yoko has her first "romantic encounter" It was kind of hard to write. ^^; I don't want her in a relationship... yet! Enjoy the chapter and REVIEW!

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Noodle's arrival at Kong brought a happier atmosphere. Russel and Murdoc were getting along, Murdoc wasn't beating 2D as much, and Yoko had a little girl to look after every day. Noodle developed a special relationship with everyone in the band, but Yoko's relationship with her was different. Whenever she had any issues, she's report right to her older sister for help. The girl was learning some broken English quite fast, but when she needed to go to the bathroom or was hungry, Yoko took care of it.

Currently, it was November 4th, 1998. Noodle had just finished her guitar part for Ghost Train. "Good, Noodle-chan!" Yoko said. Yoko no longer needed to speak in Japanese to the young girl; people were teaching her English every single day. Noodle skipped out of the recording booth with her yellow gold Les Paul still around her neck. "Thank you, Onee-san!" the girl squealed and ran off to her room. The way little Noodle acted confused everyone around her. As Yoko started mixing the completed track, the sound of clacking Cuban heels became apparent in the room. The girl spun around in the desk chair to find Murdoc Niccals leaning on the door frame. "The track's done." Yoko said. "I' better be. We 'ave a gig tonight and some bloke from EMI is comin' to see if we can ge' signed. Noodle knows 'er par', yeah?" the man asked. "Accordin' to this tape, she does." she replied. Yoko played back the tape. Noodle's loud, glorious guitar riffs filled the room. "She betta do tha' tonight." Murdoc grumbled. Before the man walked out of the room, Yoko still had one more question. "Muds, yew do know tha' my birthday's comin' up, right?" Murdoc turned around. "So?" he asked. "It's December first, in case yew forgot." Yoko said. "I'll be fifteen." She sighed. She didn't want to grow up. "Wot do yew wan' me to do abou' 'i?" The bassist asked. The girl looked down. "I-I need to finish mixin' this." she mumbled. Murdoc stepped out of the room and marched to his Winnie.

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"_Are we there yet_, Murdoc?" Yoko and Noodle whined. Noodle had a habit of copying what Yoko said and did. That was her way of learning English. "Would yew two shut your traps?" the man screamed. "Yo, Muds, pipe down! We're here!" Russel boomed. Sure enough, the group had pulled up to the Camden Brownhouse. The place was run down, old, and full of drunks. Even though she only gave the place a glance, the building was a faint memory for young Yoko. The Camden Brownhouse was her father's favorite bar. Everyone jumped out of the car, got their gear and went inside. Nobody was there yet, but that didn't stop Murdoc from waving like a big celebrity to the sleeping drunks. One of the drunks was awake, however. He had greasy blonde hair and was the lead singer in a now broken up metal band.

After setting up, the band chilled in the barren backstage. A few lawn chairs provided the uncomfortable seating. Noodle turned on her Gameboy. An hour or so passed by, and the bar was filling up rapidly. Yelling and clapping was now very apparent from the other side of the curtains. The barmaid was getting slow at filling the orders. After about two hours of mindless chatter, 2D brought up a decent question. "Murdoc, wha's our band called?" Murdoc looked at the blue haired singer. "Don't yew mean my band? We're called… eh…" Before Murdoc could continue, Noodle called out in frustration over her video game. "Gorilla! Gorillas!" she yelled. "'Ow about Gorillas?" Yoko asked. Murdoc stroked the stubble on his chin. "D'yew know, tha' ain't such a bad name, luv. Maybe pu' a z at the end or somefing." Russel raised his eyebrows. "You're right, it ain't too bad, Muds." Murdoc stood up to go and notify the bar owner of his band's name change. He had them originally booked under "Murdoc Niccals and the Bass Slayers", but the name Gorillaz was definitely an improvement. As the Satanist walked off the stage, he felt a pair of eyes following him. Murdoc turned around and saw nobody but the normal drunks that were sitting around big circular tables waiting for their drinks. The man grumbled and slithered to the owner's puny office. Meanwhile, the rest of Gorillaz were nervously awaiting their first live gig. "Anyone see a bathroom?" Yoko asked. She really, really needed to go. "I saw one outside. Be careful, though." Russel pointed outside the curtained stage. The lead guitarist hopped off the aging chair and slowly skipped off to the restroom. The thought of performing in a bar again made Yoko shiver. As she made her way over to the bathroom, many of the younger men whistled at her or made faces. She was fourteen, but she oddly resembled a seventeen year old due to her height. Yoko made her way into the bathroom. A short girl was smoking crack, which made Yoko shudder. After quickly doing her business, she washed her hands and scurried out the door, only to come face to face with a menacing man. Yoko turned her head away, not wanting to see who it was. If Yoko had looked, she would have seen a tall man with greasy blonde hair. His icy eyes were covered up with dark glasses and his breath was permanently stained with the smell of hard liquor. "Where do yew fink you're goin? You aren't leavin' me again." The man smiled evilly. The girl turned to face her own father, who was cowering over her like she was a helpless animal. "I'm no' goin' anywhere with yew." Yoko stared into his eyes with confidence. "I wouldn't be too sure about tha', luv. I've had some men out lookin' for ya. They found yew easily, bu' I felt tha' I should come an' ge' my own daughter." he snickered and put his hand on his daughter's shoulder. "Don't touch me!" she screamed. "Don't talk like tha' to your father!" the man yelled before he slapped her over the head. Yoko's body hit the bathroom door. "Wot do yew want from me?" she asked. Yoko rose from the ground, sweat starting to make its way down her face. "Wot do I wan'? Wot do I want!" the man chuckled. "Yoko, yew shouldn't even be on this Earth! Yew were an accident! Nobody wants yew 'ere! I jus' wan' yew back so I can teach yew a lesson for leavin' your father!" He picked up his hand to slap her again. She caught his hand before he could do any damage. Anger was welling inside the girl. She thought of all the things her father had done to her and her mother. He couldn't be forgiven. Yoko wanted this man off the Earth, even though he was her own father. She had never felt such a burning passion to hurt anyone ever before. The girl closed her eyes and saw dark red figurews. Voices chanted in her head telling her to hurt him. Although Yoko was not an extremely violent person, she couldn't hold it in any longer. She opened her eyes again, and they flickered red. "Wot's wrong with yew, girl? Am I scarin' ya?" he laughed. Yoko no longer had control of her own body. After mumbling a few inaudible chants, her father collapsed to the floor, unable to move. He twitched as he became possessed by the demon inside of his daughter. Yoko could no longer control herself as the anger left her body. The power surge inside her had died down, and she was no longer possessed by the demon that had been inside her since birth. Yoko fell to the floor, sweating and in pain. It made no sense to her. Her head was thumping as she rose to see her possessed father. No matter how much she had hated this man, she would have never done something so severe to him willingly. "D-Dad? Are yew awright?" she asked. There was no response. She tried to find something in her mind that would fix what she had done. If she could make her father like this, she knew she could make him normal. After minutes of thinking, she came up with nothing. Yoko broke down and cried. She couldn't do anything. She put her head against the wall. "Wot's happened to me!" she screamed. The scream was just another noise to everyone else in the loud, obnoxious bar. Her fist pounded against the old wall as the familiar sound of Cuban heels entered the room. The sinister man was quite familiar with demonic possession. He muttered an unrecognizable sentence of supposed nonsense. Yoko stopped crying and turned around. "M-Murdoc?" she squeaked. "Since when did yew learn to possess useless blokes?" he asked, jokingly. "I-I don't know… is 'e awright now?" Murdoc chuckled at the panicky state of his guitarist. "He's fine, luv. Jus' go backstage again before yew make anotha scene." He shooed the girl away. Yoko's mind was aflutter with questions once again. She had no idea what had happened in that deserted hallway, but she knew what she was going to do about it. Yoko made the decision to forget everything. To her, nothing had happened in that old, moldy hallway. She had just gone to the bathroom and left. Nothing else.

* * *

"Ok, folks, we've got, eh, a grea' lineup for ya tonight. We've go' the bes' band in town, eh, Gorillaz, or somefing, 'ere. So, that's i'. Enjoy the shoooow…" the bar owner moaned into the old microphone. He took a swig of his beer before stepping off the stage and letting Gorillaz take the spotlight. As Murdoc, 2D, Russel, Noodle and Yoko stepped out on stage, they really only had the complete attention of one man. Mr. Whiffy Smiffy was sitting at the main bar watching as the band walked out from behind the curtain. In his hand was a small shot of vodka, and a small pistol was in his pocket. He was fully aware that other record companies had showed up to try and sign the small band. To him, it didn't matter. He was able to pull any string he wanted so Gorillaz could be his. The man snickered while another shot was placed in front of him. The band took only a minute to set up before the melody to Ghost Train pumped through the entire bar. The EMI representative was taken out of his intoxication; the music was the best he had ever heard. The melodies continued for about a half hour, and by then, the man was mesmerized. He needed to meet this man who had told him to come here. All he knew was that his name was Murdoc Niccals. He sighed and took out a contract that would get them signed to the Parlophone label.

The band walked off the stage with people clapping and hollering for more. Murdoc had finally hit the jackpot. He sauntered off the stage behind everyone else, taking time to bask in his short fifteen minutes of fame for the night. The rest of the band had walked over to the bar. 2D sat up on the stool beside Russel. "Yo, can we have two beers, please?" he called out to the bartender. Two beers were chucked at them almost instantaneously. Yoko pulled herself onto the stool next to 2D. "Where's this man Muds said was comin' to sign us?" Yoko asked as she pulled Noodle into her lap. "Dunno. Doubt 'e even came." 2D mumbled. Yoko looked around for her father. He was nowhere to be found. She did, however, spot an older man looking at her from across the bar. She turned away before the man got up and made his way over to her. "Oi, aren't yew the guitarist for Gorillaz?" Yoko turned around. "We both are." she replied, pointing to Noodle. "I'm Mr. Whiffy Smiffy from EMI… wot d'yew say we make a little contract 'ere? Gorillaz'd be a grea' asset for EMI, an' we'd…" The man rambled on and on until Noodle interrupted. "Noodle bored!" she yelled. The representative looked down at her, trying to prevent exploding in rage. Noodle hopped off of Yoko's lap. "I-I'm really sorry, she's very new to English and she's jus' so young." Yoko tried to explain Noodle's short attention span. "'Ello, Whiffy." a voice said from behind her. "So, you're Murdoc Niccals, eh? Nice to meet yew." Mr. Smiffy stuck out a hand, which Murdoc didn't shake. "Jus' gimme a contract." Murdoc said. Yoko glared at Murdoc for being so rude. "Oh, sorry, and a rum!" he added. A whole bottle of rum was tossed down the bar and landed in Murdoc's hand. The other man took out the contract and a pen and handed it to the bassist. "Jus' sign 'ere, initials there, and then we can plan your signin' party!" Murdoc grabbed the pen from the sketchy man's hand. "Muds, yew have to read a contract before yew sign i'!" Yoko scolded him and stole the contract from his grip. "Wot are yew doin, yew bloody rugrat! Hand 'i ova!" Murdoc screeched. Yoko could barely read the contract because of the flailing she needed to do to keep it out of Murdoc's reach. She could make out, however, that it was a five year contract and that they would have Damon Albarn overseeing all of their projects. The girl stopped flailing at the sight of the Blur frontman's name. "D-Damon Albarn? We're workin' with Damon Albarn?" she asked. The rep shook his head. "Muds, sign the contract!" Yoko screamed. "Then hand the bloody thing over, yew git!" Yoko threw the paper at him, grumbling. Murdoc signed and initialed, and Gorillaz were officially signed to Parlophone, the label of the Beatles.

After shaking a few hands, the newly signed Gorillaz piled onto the car and drove back to their beloved Kong Studios, where party preparations had already begun. When Murdoc pulled into the car park, people were lingering all around Kong. Decorations were hung up, animals were running wild, and vodka flowed like Niagara Falls. As everyone stepped out of the car and went upstairs, hundreds of people were partying already. It was nearly midnight, but little did Yoko know that the night had just begun.

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YOKO'S POV

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I had no idea that we were going to have a record signing party that night. I figured that that Whiffy Smiffy man wanted it to be tomorrow, but apparently not. Kong had been turned into a bigger party pad than it was before, and everywhere you looked, you could see mobs of people. Murdoc headed away to a group of ladies instantly, while Russel went to the food table. Noodle saw a man in a bear suit, and ran to him. 2D obviously had no idea what was happening. "'Ow can someone invite so many people to a party within a few hours?" I thought out loud. "I-I'm no' sure why we're even havin' a party, anyway…" he said while staring off into space. "'Ey, cutie, you're comin' wif us!" A small group of girls whisked 2D away, causing him to blush intensely. I laughed until I realized that I was all alone in a sea of people. I scoured the overwhelming crowd for people I knew. I was getting angry knowing that everyone had left me, so I headed to my room. Guys who were considerably older than me followed me with their wandering eyes as I ran into the lift. A man was sleeping up against the wall. I went to my room, slightly disturbed about the many people that currently inhabited my domain. Shuddering, I walked out of the lift. There weren't as many people on the third floor. Relieved, I walked into my room to find two teens kissing on my bed. I was once again, slightly disturbed. The boy looked up to me, frightened. "Go away." I hissed. "Yew act like yew own this place! Yew don't live 'ere!" the girl growled at me. "I'm the Gorillaz guitarist. This is my room, so get out." I hissed again. "Prove i'!" the snobbish blonde girl asked. I looked at her. She had an excessively short miniskirt on, along with a pink cut off tank top. Her hair was in a high side ponytail, and you couldn't see her real face under her mask of makeup. The boy was modestly dressed in jeans and a band logo shirt. I couldn't think of any way to prove my position better than to go and pick up my favorite green Les Paul. "Wot the 'ell are yew doin?" the girl continued in a shrill voice. I plugged my guitar into the amp, turned up the volume all the way and started belting out Ghost Train as loud as possible. The girl screamed, slapped the boy, and ran out of the room. The boy flopped onto the bed, holding his hand to his face in pain. I put my guitar back in its stand and went to the boy's side. "Are yew ok?" I chuckled. "I's no' funny!" he yelled. "Relax!" I grumbled. "W-Would yew min' getting' out o' 'ere? I kinda wanted to ge' away from the party." I avoided his gaze. He looked at me with a vicious smile. "Why would yew wan' me to leave now, luv?"

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AUTHOR'S POV

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The boy snaked dangerously close to Yoko. "P-Please, leave me alone." she said with a twinge of anger in her voice. "Why should I?" he asked before sloppily pressing his lips to hers. The girl was petrified. "Stop i'!" she yelled before kicking him straight in the stomach. The boy looked up at her, outraged. "You've go' problems!" he yelled. "Really… big… problems!" he continued, struggling to breathe. Yoko felt familiar images flashing into her head. "I'm sorry… I really am, i's just tha' I… I don' know wha's wrong with me." she sat beside the boy, who was now sitting back in his place on the bed. After minutes of silence, Yoko confronted the boy. "You're a womanizer, aren't yew?" she asked. He took a strand of the guitarist's hair and twirled it. "I guess yew could say tha'." he replied. "My dad works for Parlophone, so I come to all of his groupie parties." Yoko just looked at him. "Oh." she said. The boy put his arm around the girl. "So, can we, eh, start this over again?" he asked. Yoko looked at him. "I'd rather no', because yew know I can kick your lazy arse. So, could yew please leave now? I don' want anyone in my room when I'm no' there." The boy looked terrified of the half Japanese girl. "A-Awright. I'm assuming you're leavin' too, then?" he asked. "Yeah. Don' come findin' me, because yew won't." Yoko strode out of the room, the boy following straight behind her.

* * *

"A-A-An' I'm goin' to thank m-my band ova 'ere. They've h-h-elped me ge' this r-r-reallly big check. Bu' no' much. So, uh, thanks for the giant check… and I'll see yew blokes a' the bank! Huh-huh-huh! Now sod off, everyone!" Murdoc warbled to the crowd. He was standing on the food table with two women holding a bottle of tequila and the monstrous check that EMI had made for him. The Satanist was over the moon with the popularity he was getting. 2D was getting quite some attention from the ladies, Russel was asleep on the couch, and Noodle had been zipping around like a Japanese bullet train all night. The crowd applauded and soon most of the people had filed out of the building. Murdoc took his dates to the Winnebago, 2D watched a zombie film and Russel continued sleeping. Yoko was tucked in her bed sleeping as well, even though it was 6 AM. However, at Kong Studios, it was almost always rainy and dark. Yoko tossed and turned in bed. She was exhausted from the gig, the party, almost everything. Just before she fell asleep, she heard her doorknob turn gently. Tiny footsteps were apparent on the cold mahogany floor. Yoko cracked her eye open to see a pajama clad Noodle carrying a stuffed panda into her room. "Noodle-chan, why're yew in 'ere? Is the thunder scarin' yew?" she asked. "Hai, Yoko-sama. It scare Noodle. Noodle sleep with Yoko-sama? Murdocu-sama in Winnebago, 2D-sama asleep on couch, Noodle don't know where Russel-sama is." She looked afraid. "Sure, Noods, climb in." Yoko patted the empty side of her bed. Noodle threw her panda on the bed and jumped onto the mattress, causing the bed to shake. "Night, Noods." Yoko mumbled. "Night-night, Yoko-sama."

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Was that a good chapter? I hope so. Yoko's got a little attitude, doesn't she? Just so you guys know, I really don't like writing with cuss words, which is why I don't use them a lot. Heehee, this is just getting more and more fun to write. I'll have the next chapter up in a day or two. See ya!


	12. 15 Already

Sorry, I didn't have time to edit this. I have to make this quick before I go to bed... Yoko is not possessed, she's part demon. Got that? Goodnight, and enjoy the chapter.

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"Noodle-girl? Where are yew?" Yoko sat up in her bed. She stretched and got out of bed. "Musta gotten up already." she said to herself. The guitarist yawned before standing up to look in her closet for something to wear. The small closet was terribly disorganized and strange items that had come with Kong littered the floor. She grunted before picking out a short sleeved orange sweater with a red stripe across the chest. She threw that on her bed before picking out some older, light wash jeans. Yoko was not a fashionista and didn't exactly care about what she looked like. She wore clothing that worked for the time being. After changing out of her nightclothes, Yoko proceeded to go into the lift. While pressing the button, Yoko smelled something delicious wafting from the kitchen. The odd thing was that it smelled more like dinner. Curious, Yoko stepped out of the lift and jogged towards the kitchen, seeing Russel setting down a large bowl of mac and cheese on the table for Noodle and 2D. "Russ, wha' time is 'i?" she asked. "It's… uh… 6 PM. Did ya just wake up?" he replied. "Oh." She said while rubbing her eyes. 2D helped himself to a bowl of the cheesy pasta. "Oi, Russ, this is pretty gud!" 2D smiled, his absent front teeth prominent. Noodle eyed the macaroni dish from across the table. She reached across for the spoon to fill up her bowl, but her arms were too scrawny to even reach halfway. She pouted. "Naze ryōri wa tōkudesu ka? Watashi ga tabetai!" she yelled. Lately, Noodle was having a tendency to speak in Japanese when she was in distress, much to the dismay of the other men in the house. "Rirakkusu shite kudasai, Noodle-chan. Watashi wa anata no tame ni sore o shutoku shimasu." Yoko sighed while reaching over to scoop up a spoonful for the little girl and herself. "Arigato, Yoko-sama!" Noodle yelled. "How d'yew know Japanese, Yoko-girl? I was always curious 'bout tha'." asked 2D, his mouth filled with his dinner. Russel joined them at the table with a questioning look. Yoko ignored the question and wolfed down her mac and cheese. 2D brushed it off and continued eating. Noodle was done in an instant and got up to clear her plate. "'D, where's Muds?" asked Yoko with a concerned look on her face. "I fink he go' a nasty hangova." the blue haired man replied. Yoko cocked an eyebrow. "Since when is tha' unusual?" she asked. Russel chuckled through a mouthful of food. "I'm gonna go see 'im." Yoko said. The rest of the band members looked at her with concerned eyes. "E's gonna kill ya, Yoko-luv! Are yew really sure yew wanna go in there?" 2D's eyes thinned. "My dad go' hangovas every night. I'm pretty sure I can 'andle i'." the girl said back. "Good luck." Russel grunted.

Yoko wandered off to the car park, which was still quite littered from the big party. Beer cans and empty wine bottles were tossed every which way. The place reeked of alcohol and cigarettes, although that smell was very familiar to the older guitarist. She approached the Winnebago with caution before opening the rickety metal door. The horrid stench hit Yoko like a brick wall. She stifled her small coughs and continued into the old, rusty mess. Murdoc had left a trail of destruction in his path. A line of rum and vodka bottles led Yoko to the man's bed, where Murdoc laid barely awake under the covers. "Wot d'yew want? I'm busy!" he groaned. "Yew don't look busy to me." Yoko tilted her head to the side. "Don' be an arse, Yoko! Wot d'yew want!" the man was yelling now. "Ge' up." she said. "Why?" Murdoc groaned like an angry teenager. "You're 'ungova. D'yew wan' help or no'?" Yoko said as she put her hands on her hips. Murdoc was seething. He knew he couldn't ignore the girl. "Fine. Wot d'yew think yew can do?" he asked as he pulled himself out of bed. The man's bags under his eyes were worse than usual and his eyes were on the verge of being bloodshot. "Depends on wot yew 'ave in your cabinets." she replied before entering the kitchenette of the Winnie. She opened the faux wood cabinets with care and looked inside. Most of the contents were dead, half dead, or rotten. "Luv, you're no' gonna find anything in there." he teased with a smirk on his face. Yoko scoured the cabinets again and found two things that would be of use. "Where's a cup?" the girl asked. Snickering, Murdoc turned on the television to an adult channel. "Dunno. Find sum yourself." he moaned. Murdoc had no cups whatsoever, so the guitarist picked up an empty beer bottle from the floor. Yoko reached into the cabinets to grab what she found; a bottle sauerkraut and tomato juice. She took the beer bottle and slipped the juice from the sauerkraut bottle inside of it. She threw the bottle into the cabinet again and picked up the half empty bottle of V8 tomato juice. It was a few days past its expiration date, but she threw it in anyway. She shook the concoction up before handing it to the hungover man. "Wot the 'ell is this supposed ta be?" he asked. "Drink." she commanded. Grumbling, Murdoc drank the oddly colored beverage. "Wot the 'ell is in this?" he screamed, coughing. "Somefing that'll make yew betta. I'm no' leaving until yew finish the whole fing." Yoko sat down on the floor, scooting away from the awkwardly colored stain that was near her. The man opened his mouth to protest until he remembered what the girl was capable of doing. "Woteva." he grumbled.

Murdoc drank the juice until there wasn't a drop left. "D'yew know, Yoko-luv, tha' stuff kinda worked." the man said quietly. "You're actin' like I've neva been involved with alcohol before." she said as she got up from her spot on the carpet. "Yew can leave now." He pointed to the door. "Don't mind if I do." she said daintily before strutting out.

* * *

Gorillaz had attemped recording their debut album a few days after they were signed. Spending almost days at a time in the Studio had put too much pressure on everyone, even Noodle. Everyone was close to their breaking point the day Mr. Damon Albarn decided to pay a visit. He had mocked Murdoc's Cuban heels and stared curiously at 2D and his zombie like looks. Murdoc was in a full blown rage about an hour into the first meeting. Yoko, however, couldn't have been happier. Her secret obsession of Blur had been unknown by the rest of her bandmates. Over time, everyone became friends with Damon and in a way, looked up to him. Many things happened in that month, but on November 31st, Gorillaz officially started recording. And the next day was a particularly special day: it was Yoko's birthday.

Yoko had left the recording studio at 3 PM on November 31st, due to her lack of sleep for two days. The rest of the band members continued on, trying to finish the current track they were working on. It was hopeless; Yoko knew how to work most of the computers and technical stuff. "Murdocu-sama! Yoko-sama's birthday t-to-tomorrow!" she slowly yelled. "She's right, Muds. I need ta go ou' an get 'er somfink. Wif all of this recordin goin' on, I-I hafen't lef' the 'ouse in weeks." 2D looked at Murdoc with a bit of hope in his dark, round eyes. "Fine. Where are we goin?" Murdoc leaned against the wall. "I wan' ta ge' 'er a melodica." 2D said with confidence. "Ooh! Watashi wa kanojo no katana o kōnyū suru!" Noodle squealed. "Wot?" Murdoc asked. "She wants to get 'er a katana, Muds. Even I know that." Russel boomed. "Personally, I want to get her a nice dress, maybe." the large man said happily. All eyes were on Russel now. "What are ya gonna get her, Muds?" he asked. "Why woul' I ge' 'er somefing? I've neva given 'er anyfing for 'er birthday since I've known 'er!" he yelled. "Murdoc-sama get gifuto for Yoko-sama." Noodle growled."Oh, woteva! Le's jus' go!" Murdoc tossed his hands up in distress. Russel left a note for Yoko outside her door and the other four Gorillaz members piled into their newly purchased, customized Geep to go and find birthday gifts for their favorite little Yoko-girl.

* * *

December 1st, 1998: Yoko was now fifteen years old. Her clock struck 8 AM, causing her beeping alarm to blare and echo across her room. "Shu' up!" she yelled at it. She looked down to see that she hadn't changed out of yesterdays clothing. Grumbling, she went to her closet and threw on whatever was in there. In this case, it was a purple dress with a black belt just below the chest. It was not something the girl would usually wear, but the rest of her closet was literally trashed with old junk. Mumbling to herself, she looked at her calendar and crossed off the previous day with a marker that was held on a string taped to the closet. She changed the month to December and saw the first day. A smile crept onto her face. "It's my birthday!" she squealed. Yoko quickly made her bed and scuttled into the lift. She entered the lobby with excitement. She turned the corner to the kitchen, expecting to see her four band mates there, eating. Instead, she saw nobody there. "2D? Muds? Anyone 'ere?" she called out. The only response was her echo. She exited the kitchen and walked into Kong's Theatre. She took w few steps before she heard a loud yell. "Surprise!" A small crowd of people jumped out from behind the theatre seats. "Wot the…" she screamed, almost bumping into the man behind her. "Surprise, luv." he cackled. "M-Murdoc?" She turned around. "Yew did this?" she asked. "Well, 2D and Russ helped a bi', and Noods decorated… bu' i' was mostly me." He pointed to himself. "Shut up, Muds, we did as much as you." Russel appeared from behind Murdoc. "Oh, shu' up, Lards." he groaned. "Happy birthday, Yoko-girl!" Russel engulfed her into a massive hug. "Fank yew, Russel!" she flashed him a smile. She suddenly jumped into Murdoc giving him a massive hug. His body turned tense before he realized what had happened. "Fank yew, Mudsie." she said into his shirt. "Mudsie? Wot the 'ell? I'm no' Mudsie!" he complained. "Deal wif if, Murdoc." 2D said. He had also approached from behind with Noodle on his back. "H-Happy birthday, Yoko-sama!" Noodle shouted. Yoko warmly grinned at her. "Fank yew, Noods!" she said. Noodle leaped off of 2D's shoulders and into Yoko's arms, causing her to giggle. Yoko caught the girl with ease, laughing. She ruffled her hair before putting her down to hug her favorite blue haired singer. "Fank yew, 2D!" she said before falling into his arms laughing. Murdoc grunted. After all of the surprises were over, Yoko looked over to the small crowd that was sitting in the seats of the Theatre. She saw Damon Albarn, Jamie Hewlett, and quite a few of the people at Parlophone that she knew. Whiffy Smiffy was there, as well. After eating cake, Murdoc stepped onto the stage. "Oi! Shu' up, all of yew!" he yelled. The room became silent. "Yesterday I found a pretty interesting tape in my lovely Winnebago. I fink tha' yew all will enjoy i'. Roll the tape, Faceache!" he screamed. After pushing a button, the theatre screen went down, and an old video played. "Murdoc, ge' tha' camera ou' of my face!" a shriller and younger Yoko exclaimed. "No, yew need ta record somefing tha' we can sell on eBay when we ge' popular! Awright, how does this work…" Murdoc voice was now heard. The camera appeared to be settled on a makeshift tripod. By then, Murdoc was not only audible but he was also visible. "'Ello, this is the first official demo tape for my band, Murdoc and the Bass Slayers." Murdoc read off of an index card. The man picked up his bass and began playing. "Why are we doing this? We don' 'ave a drummer or a vocalist, Murdoc! This is completely idiotic!" Yoko screeched. Her face soon became more visible to the camera. "He's a git, he really is." she whispered and turned off the camera. The crowd was laughing hysterically. Random tapes continued playing, including some with 2D in them. Memories and flashbacks flooded the girl and tears entered her eyes. She looked at Murdoc, who had taken his seat in the front row. She saw him chuckling and possibly even shedding a tear as well.

* * *

Yoko had opened all of her gifts from others, which had mostly been music related. Damon had gotten her a fiery red bass that she could play in her spare time, Jamie had gotten her an art set, and the list went on and on. As the party ended later that day, she still hadn't opened the gifts from her band mates. After everyone was gone, the band piled into the main room of Kong and gathered their presents for the guitarist. She opened Russel's first. It was in a two foot long box. She opened it to reveal a beautiful dress that was a dark blue satin on top and dark black velvet on the bottom. She held the dress up against her tall frame, seeing that it came about to her knees. She got up and hugged Russel and thanked him for the gift. "This dress… i's gorgeous… and I don't normally wear dresses, much less give 'em a compliment!" She returned to her position on the floor. She opened Noodle's gift next. It was an extremely long box that was wrapped in a Japanese brand of wrapping paper. Yoko tore it opened carefully and opened the box. "A-A katana? No way! Fanks, Noods!" she smiled. She took it out and posed like a ninja, much to Murdoc's demise. Noodle nodded in joy and Yoko turned to open 2D's gift. It was an average sized box wrapped in blue paper. She tore it open to reveal a brand new yellow melodica. She immediately picked it up and played it. "'Ey, you're real good!" 2D smiled. "Fank yew, 2D!" she said as she ran up to give him a hug. Last but not least was Murdoc's gift, which was sitting alone in the middle of the floor. Yoko was surprised that he had even gotten her something. She took the long, guitar shaped package and wildly unwrapped it to reveal a black Gibson guitar. It had more of an old school design to it which the girl adored. Yoko ran her fingers along the strings and the neck. "M-Murdoc… i's beautiful…" she said in awe. When she went to hug and thank him, he was no longer tensed up.

* * *

The rest of the day was spent eating, recording, and playing games. Although recording was a drag, the band still tried to have fun with it. After almost two years of recording demo after demo, the producer shut down progress at Kong Studios and threw a twist at Gorillaz: they were going to record in Jamaica.

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Was that good? I hope so. :D


	13. All I Ever Wanted

Wow, we got to 4000 words on this one! For this chapter, I have to thanks Magicalgirl23, she's helped me a lot with ideas! Thank you so much for the reviews, I read every single one. And by the way, please don't be afraid to send in ideas! I LOVE READING THEM. SERIOUSLY. R&R, Party People. See ya soon!

* * *

**April 14th, 2000, Gorillaz start packing for their trip to record in Jamaica…**

"Noodle! Gimme my bathin' suit!" the sixteen year old Yoko screamed. Noodle, now ten years old, was even more energetic and hyper. She was also still learning English. Noodle ran down the hallway of Kong, eager to try on her sister's clothing. "Noods! Ge' ova 'ere!" she screeched. Yoko followed after her, hormones raging. Not paying attention to where she was going, she ran straight into the band's cerulean haired singer. The collision caused the two to collapse onto the floor. "2D! I'm so sorry, are yew awright?" she asked as she rubbed her head. "Nofin worse than wot Muds does. I'm fine." he replied, stretching out his legs. "Could yew 'elp me catch Noods? She's go' my bathing suit." the girl complained. Realizing the distress of his sixteen year old little sister, he helped her up. "Eh, I'm no' very good a' runnin', luv, bu' I can try…" he rubbed his fingers together. The pair took off running behind Noodle, whose footsteps could be heard going toward the lift. "She gonna ge' away!" Yoko whispered while quickening her pace, 2D not far behind. They turned a corner and saw the lift doors closing with Noodle inside, waving at them. "F-f-f…" Yoko was fuming. "Why are yew even lookin' fer yer bathin' suit anyway?" 2D asked, unaware of the trip they were taking the next day. "Yew don' rememba? We're goin' to Jamaica!" she spat. 2D's face dulled. "I-I'm sorreh! I forgo'!" he held his hands up in defense as if the girl was going to hit him. "Wot're doin' tha for?" she asked, hormones cooling down. "Y-Yew reminded me o' Murdoc for a minute there." the man said. There was a silence before Yoko burst out laughing. "Seriously?" she asked between giggles. 2D broke out into a nervous laughter. He knew he wasn't as hormonal when he was a teen. "Girls are prob'ly different." he thought. The lift dinged and opened, and they ran into it, pushing any button they could get their hands on. It beeped and went up to the third floor of Kong. They stepped out of the lift and heard loud singing coming from Yoko's room. "No…" Yoko whispered. She ran to her room and kicked open the door, expecting the worst. Instead, she was greeted with the sight of Noodle putting the bathing suit neatly into Yoko's suitcase, along with a few other clothes. 2D looked in the doorway, expecting Noodle to be trashing the room. He too was astonished with what he saw. "Noods, I though yew were…" Yoko couldn't continue. Noodle picked up the heavy suitcase and wobbly walked it over to her older sister. "Watashi wa anata no tame no pakku!" she said happily. "Yew packed for me? Fank yew, Noodle!" Yoko ruffled the Asian girl's hair. "Speakin' of packin, 2D, 'ave yew packed ye'?" Yoko asked. 2D scratched his head. "Well, I didn't know we were goin' anywhere, so I guess no'." Yoko looked at him. "D'yew nee' 'elp packin? I go' nofing else to do today." the girl offered. "Sure, why no'?" 2D gave a toothy smile. The two then took the lift down to his room, happier than they were five minutes ago.

* * *

"Bu' why would yew be wearin' a long sleeved shir' in Jamaica? Even I know tha'!" Yoko asked. 2D threw his T Virus shirt in anyway. "I fink I'm done now." he announced as he zippered his luggage. It had taken 2D an hour to pack all of his belongings for the long stay in Jamaica. His bag was bursting at the seams with clothes, zombie films, toiletries, and extra toothbrushes. Yoko checked the time on her watch: 12:00 PM. "I'm gonna ge' somefing to eat. Yew wan' anyfing?" she asked. "Naw, I'm gonna stay 'ere, away from Murdoc." the man sighed. "Enjoy your lunch." he continued. Yoko smiled and turned to leave before she stopped in the doorway. "2D?" she asked. "Yeah?" he looked up from his zombie magazine. "Don' be afraid of Mudsie." she said before skipping out of the room.

Yoko walked through the car park in silence. She glanced over to the Winnebago. Murdoc had put up a new sign on the door that stated "F OFF!" He was planning on making it more vulgar until Russel saw it and feared for little Noodle. The sign had been shortened to what it was now with a sharpie marker. Yoko normally ignored the sign and usually was the only one allowed to do so, along with Noodle, on occasion. She watched the Winnebago and decided that it wouldn't hurt to pay her favorite bassist a visit. She opened the door and climbed into the vehicle. Murdoc looked over from his sofa. "'Ello, luv! Fancy a drink?" he said cheerfully, holding out a bottle of rum. As usual, she declined. "More for me, then!" he cheered. "Why woul' I drink underage, Muds?" He just looked at her. "Luv, if yew fink tha's bad, yew should 'ave seen me in my younger days. I've been smokin' and drinkin' since I was ten!" he cackled. "An' look a' yew now." Yoko sighed. "Wot's tha' supposed ta mean?" he growled. Yoko only giggled. "Shu' up!" he yelled. The girl tried to control her laughter. "Yew know, you're sixteen, yew can drink with an adult a' a bar." the man implied. Yoko stopped laughing. Although she spent years in bars and around drunks, she never had an alcoholic beverage in her life. It did, however, fascinate her. She had always wondered what the liquid would taste like going down her throat. "Really?" she asked curiously. Murdoc nodded before taking another swig from his bottle. "Mudsie, are yew goin' to a bar anytime soon?" Yoko asked, slyly. "Wot kind of question is tha', luv?" he asked, smirking. "A serious one." she replied. Murdoc checked both ways to see if anyone else was looking. "I'm goin' to a bar tonigh'. Yew can come, jus' don't tell Russ, ya hear?" he offered. Yoko cheered on the inside. "Fine. Jus' don' bring any girls home wif us." Yoko said, standing in the door of the Winnie. "Heh, can't promise anythin', luv." he chuckled. He was still chuckling when the door to his love shack slammed shut.

* * *

The rest of the day was filled with packing for the trip that would take place the next day. Everyone in Kong was looking forward to going to a nice island, but Yoko had different thoughts on her mind. She was anticipating the night to come. The girl acted like a young teen being able to put on makeup for the first time; excited, worried, and very inexperienced. Russel had prepared dinner that night; a Japanese meal with sushi, miso soup and fried rice. Noodle had helped Russel greatly in the art of cooking a Japanese meal. Making sushi rice was the most enjoyable activity, along with rolling up the fish in the nori. Noodle insisted in bringing the food out in trays to everyone. Dressed in a makeshift kimono made of a spare tablecloth, Noodle shakily brought out a tray that was covered with food. She carefully set it on the table and bowed. 2D laughed at how cute the little gesture was. Everyone soon started stuffing their faces. Even Murdoc tried the raw fish, and he enjoyed it 2D, however, struggled with his chopsticks. His hands were tangled around the two wooden sticks."'D, man, you need help?" Russel asked, trying not to laugh. "Ehh, I don' fink so, I fink I go' i'…" 2D said before accidently flinging a small piece of sashimi into Murdoc's face. Murdoc sat there for a moment, his chopsticks no longer moving. "Yew… freakin'…git!" Murdoc screamed. The man lunged at 2D from across the table. 2D scrambled like a fast rabbit. "N-N-N-No! Murdoc!" he screamed from the hallway. Murdoc got up, his chair falling to the ground. Snarling, he ran after 2D. "Faceache!" he screamed even louder. "Murdoc!" Yoko warned. Murdoc turned to her. "Yoko." he growled. Before anything else could be said, Noodle jumped onto her chair. "Noodle!" she screamed in delight. Everyone looked at her. 2D crawled from the floor to look at what had happened. Sweat was trickling down his head and was getting caught in his thick brows. Without thinking, a boot connected with his face and blood trickled down his nose. Murdoc sauntered back to his chair to finish his meal, while Yoko got up to help her best friend. She bent down, examining the bloody nose. "Murdoc, consider yo'self lucky tha' i's no' broken." she gently touched Stuart's nose while helping him up. "Come 'un, I'll clean you up." She grabbed his hand and took him to the nearest bathroom in Kong. "Yoko, go back 'an eat, I'm fine." he prodded. The girl said nothing. When the two got into the bathroom, the blue head went to sit on the counter. Yoko dug through a cabinet to find the emergency kits her and Russel put in every bathroom. "'Ere, wipe the blood off wif this." She handed him a small, gauze like piece of cloth from underneath the cabinet. 2D rubbed it on his nose, checking to see if blood was coming off periodically. Yoko looked up at his nose. "Stu, is i' awright if I touch i'?" she asked, gently. 2D squinted at her. "Why would yew need ta ask, luv?" he said with a goofy smile. "Ok, tell me if i' 'urts." She moved her hands across his nose, feeling the dislodged bone. "This may 'urt, ok?" she told him. Yoko manipulated her hands and moved the bone back into place. It moved with a sickening cracking sound that pierced the whole bathroom. 2D cringed, but didn't say a word. "D-Did i' hurt?" she asked. "Yeah, like 'ell. Bu' i' feels betta." he said as he rubbed his nose while looking in the bathroom mirror. He hopped off the counter and gave Yoko a kiss on the cheek. "Fanks, luv!" he said before walking out. Yoko touched the spot on her face where his lips had touched. She walked into one of the bathroom stalls to go to the bathroom, but ended up staying in for an extra fifteen minutes to think about everything that happened to her within the past three years. She no longer was a little kid anymore. She put her head in her hands and replayed every single memory she had. Most were frightening memories caused by her father. The beating, abuse and alcoholism of her father had taken a toll on her for so long; too long. The door to the bathrooms opened, and someone stepped inside. "Oi, Yoko, ge' ou' 'ere!" Murdoc hissed. "Wot?" she hissed back. "We're leavin! Ge' your arse outta there before Russ sees yeh!" He sounded angrier. Yoko walked out of the stall. "Can we bring 2D?" she asked. "No, I'm no' draggin tha' Dullard anywhere, period!" he yelled. Yoko shushed him. "Pweese?" she asked, fluttering her eyelashes. Murdoc looked away. "Tha's no' gonna work anymore, Yoko." he said. "Bu' Mudsie…" she asked, eyes getting wider. "F-Fine. Go ge' 'im." he stammered. Murdoc pointed outside the door. Yoko tiptoed out in search of the singer, trying to not to cause much distraction. It was already 9 PM. Noodle was most likely in bed, and Russel would be in his own room. Quietly, Yoko scampered like a mouse to find her brother. "2D? Where are yew?" she called out. No answer. Sighing, she turned the corner of some sort of hallway. She didn't even know where she was going anymore. Humming one of her guitar riffs, she was barely paying attention to where she was going anymore. She turned another corner and smacked into a large, six foot two object. She heard someone else yell. As she picked herself up off of the floor, she saw Stuart Pot lying down on the floor, rubbing his head. "2D, I-I'm sorry! I was jus' lookin for yew!" she said as she helped him up. "Well, I'm righ' 'ere. Wot d'yew need, luv? he asked, his eyebrows furrowed. Yoko looked around for the presence of Russel or Noodle. They weren't anywhere near the spot she was, so she continued. "I'm goin'to a bar with Muds. Can yew come?" she asked nervously. Thinking for a moment, the man smiled. "Sure. Wouldn't want yew there all alone wif 'im. Yew can drink now, righ'?" Yoko nodded, looking abashed. "Well, come 'un then! Le's go!" The two walked to the car park to see Murdoc waiting in a red sports car. "When did we ge' this?" Yoko asked, climbing into the backseat. "When I go' 'i. Tha's when." Murdoc replied. 2D hopped into the front seat. Murdoc grumbled before turning the key into the ignition. The engine roared to life, causing Murdoc to snicker. He put the car in drive before speeding out of the car park and down the massive hill that Kong was set atop of.

The drive to the bar was horrendous with Murdoc speeding and daredevilish instincts kicking in. After only about a five minute drive that could have normally been fifteen minutes, the car halted to a sudden stop in a shady looking parking lot. Everyone hopped out of the car with eager looks on their faces. Neither of the men had gone to a bar in a few weeks due to the constant recording and visits from Dan the Automator and Damon Albarn. Yoko, of course, hadn't been to a bar in a good two years. The threesome stepped into the dark bar. The stench of smoke, alcohol, and cologne hit them like a wall. Murdoc happened to like the smell; to Yoko, it was all too familiar. Yoko scouted the place. The poor girl was in fear of another incident. She no longer wanted to see her father anywhere, especially not here or now. The other, demonic half inside of her hadn't come out since that painful night, and she intended to keep it that way. The memory replayed in her mind no matter how many times she screamed at herself to stop. Yoko was now standing against the doorframe staring off when Murdoc pulled her wrist away. "Wot're yew doin, luv?" he asked. "Getting wasted awready? Huh huh huh." Yoko snapped out of her deadening trance and followed Murdoc. She set her bottom down on the leather bar stool and let the pressure that had been building up melt away. The bartender approached them slowly. "Oi, can I 'ave a round o' vodka shots? An', uh…" Murdoc stroked his chin, thinking. "An' ge' 'er a Jack an' Coke." He pointed to Yoko. The bartender turned to 2D. He stumbled upon what to get, until he just ordered a glass of beer. There was silence until the drinks came out. Murdoc looked around for some girl to bring home, while 2D tapped his fingers on his skinny thigh. Yoko, however, still looked around for her father. She knew very well that he wasn't there. He drove her paranoid, though. Yoko watched every turn she made, always trying to be discreet. She never wanted the spotlight, and if it was handed to her, she preferred to pass it away. Yoko also felt that she never had luck with men, either. She was unaware of her beauty. She felt uncomfortable with herself. Yoko didn't even know how she was going to be able to perform big concerts or do interviews with the press, if Gorillaz happened to get popular. She shook all of the thoughts out of her head as a drink was placed in front of her. Yoko had no idea what to do with it. Murdoc had a large amount of shot glasses placed in front of him. "Cheers, luv!" he said as he raised his smallish glass to hers. Yoko faked a smile and held her glass up. 2D joined in and everyone took the first swig of their beverages. The alcohol hit Yoko's tongue like a burning fire. It was mixed with Coca Cola, so it was easier on her taste buds than expected. Murdoc looked at her while picking up another shot glass. "Well, luv?" He looked at her. When she didn't respond for a few seconds, 2D turned to look. "I-I's grea'." she said. Murdoc snickered and took another shot.

* * *

"M-M-Mudsssie, why a' we goin' 'home?" Yoko moaned. She was fully drunk and wasn't really with it. Murdoc hadn't gotten drunk even after a round or two of shots, and 2D was only slightly more tipsy than usual. "Ge' in the car, Yoko-girl." he sighed. Yoko was currently clinging to his arm, happy as a clam. Never had he seen her so uncaring and disheveled. He shook her off his arm like she was an attacking, clingy animal. Yoko almost fell into the car laughing hysterically. Murdoc grunted in disgust and got into the driver's side. 2D entered the passenger's side, almost tripping over his own feet. "Hurry up, Fachache, I don' 'ave time fer this!" he complained as he clacked his overgrown fingernails on the wheel. 2D settled himself into the car before Murdoc sped off to Kong, Yoko stifling giggles in the backseat.

The girl's giggling calmed down shortly before they arrived in the car park. Murdoc became concerned when they pulled in. Yoko was being awfully quiet in the backseat. He huffed and got out of the car, 2D following suit. Murdoc walked over to the backseat passenger door to open it. The sight that met him was quite surprising. Yoko was sleeping like a baby, curled up in almost a fetal position. "Aw, look 'a 'er…" 2D mumbled, his elbow resting against the top of the car. "Ge' inside, Dullard. Stay away from Lards if 'e's eatin' in the kitchen." He pointed to the door that lead inside. 2D studied the man. The bottom of his eyes were forming eyes underneath them. "Goo' night, then." 2D waved at Murdoc as he turned around to go inside. Murdoc thought of how he could get the girl inside. He bent in to try to wake her up, thinking that it was the only option. Before his hand hit her shoulder, he hesitated. He crawled into the car and picked up his guitarist bridal style. Kicking the door shut with the back of his Cuban heel, he strutted off to Yoko's room to drop her off.

He entered the lift silently and it paraded up to the third floor. Murdoc walked down the deadly quiet hallways of Kong Studios, passing Noodle and Russel's rooms. He finally reached Yoko's room after five minutes of turning countless corners. The girl was still fully asleep and was making little grunting and snoring noises that even pulled on Murdoc's heartstrings a bit. He gazed at the sign on her door. IT had little skulls and crossbones on it, along with come generic pink flowers that Noodle had helped draw a few years ago. When nobody was looking, Murdoc had grabbed a Sharpie and drew a small, unnoticeable inverted cross in the lower right hand corner. He cackled quietly at the sight and opened the cream colored door. He was greeted by an eerie blue light that bathed the room in a reassuring darkness. He looked around her spacious room before approaching her bed. Posters of The Clash, the Beatles, Black Sabbath and Electric Light Orchestra decorated the walls. Magazines and clothing were tossed every which way, along with stuffed animals and vinyl records of all sorts. Yoko's room was like a collection of things scattered everywhere. Treasures were hidden within the mess; you just had to be brave enough to search to find the many diamonds in the rough. Murdoc walked over to the modern, four poster bed and set the girl down, covering her in her blankets. He stared at her face. She had matured a lot in the past three years, more than he could ever imagine. Sighing, he took one last look at her before leaving. He pecked her cheek before striding out to his Winnebago, Cuban heels clacking throughout the hallways.

* * *

Yoko was sound asleep in her bed, not dreaming of anything. She kicked the covers off, heat surging though her young, overloaded body. Voices were chanting in her head again. A voice similar to her own chanted her name. Putting her pillow over her head, the sound was muffled slightly, which lead her to believe that someone other than herself was in her room. She squirmed and emerged from out of her bed looking like she had been through a war. Her hear was sticking out everywhere and was matted to the top of her head, the minimal makeup she wore was smeared. Her shirt had a suspicious stain on it. She walked slowly around her room, hands ready to strike if need be. "'Ello?" she growled. "Ova 'ere, luv." said a sultry voice that sounded like her own, only much more mature and strong. Yoko whipped around to face her long mirror. She turned a shade of ghostly white at the reflection that greeted her. It was an older version of her, dressed in a black leather jumpsuit and high heeled red boots. She was a good five inches taller and was as tan as a California girl. The low cut of the jumpsuit frightened the real Yoko tremendously, and a red bra was visible from underneath it. "W-W-Who are yew?" Yoko stepped back. "Hun, I'm the otha' 'alf of yew. Yew neva wondered who had come ou' when yew go' mad? Tha' was me, luv!" she laughed loudly. "Sshh! You'll wake people up!" Yoko said in a hushed tone. "Luv, you're the only one that can hear or see me." he said, her lips in a pouting position. Yoko shifted her weight from foot to foot. "Yoko-dear, I don't know if you've noticed by now, bu' you're part demon." She giggled like a little school girl. Yoko stared at her. "N-No. I'm no'." Her fists balled up as she spoke. "I've been hidden for sooo long, yew 'ave no idea." she said as she twisted a lock of her hair, which had light, bubbly curls. "I know of all of your desires. Yew wan' ta get your Daddy Dear off yer back, yew want to be able to work the spotlight, yew want boys…" she listed. She giggled when she said boys. Yoko was about to deny it all until she realized that this Yoko was right. All of these things were things she longed for. "W-Wot can yew do about i'?" Yoko stuttered, almost falling down on her bed. "Well, luv, if yew jus' let me come ou' a bi' more, you'll 'ave all yew wan' an' more." she purred. The offer was tempting, too tempting. "Yew know yew wan' ta live lik' your lil' friend, oh, wot's 'is name, Murdoc Niccals? Yew know yew wan' the dates, the fame, the alcohol. I saw yew tonigh'. Don' think I don' know." she winked. She was coaxing Yoko like a little kitten. "Y-Yew do. Where do I sign?" Yoko asked, looking for a contract. A paper flew from the ceiling, complete with a pre-inked quill. "Jus' sign a' the bottom, luv." she smiled sickly. Yoko didn't read the contract at all, and signed her name in perfect cursive. "Well, done, dear, well done. Have fun, and I'll be with yew when ya need me!" she said before snapping her fingers. In an instant, she was gone, and so was Yoko.

* * *

Everything around her was black. Panicking, she fluttered her eyes open to be greeted by rays of sunlight reflecting off of everything. She cured under her breath and got up, sweat covering her clothes. She grumbled and stepped out of bed, not bothering to make it. A loud knocking was apparent at her door. "Yoko! Ge' your arse ou' o' bed! We're leavin' in a 'alf hour for the airport!" Murdoc screamed. Yoko normally would have ignored the screaming, but with this new attitude, she was not going to tolerate it. Not one bit.

* * *

Was that good? This took forever to write, you'd better like it! :D


	14. With You

Sorry for the delay, guys. I'll make a deal with you... I can make 3000-6000 word chapters if you give me a bit more time. I promise I won't take this long in the future. Thanks to all of the reviewers, reading reviews is really fun to me.

And PLEASE SEND ME MESSAGES! THEY CAN BE ABOUT ANYTHING! I LIKE TALKING TO YOU GUYS! I won't be around til late tonight, though. I'm going to a baseball game. Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Murdoc continued knocking and yelling loudly until the moment Yoko opened the door. He looked at his guitarist in disgust before realizing the state she was in. She looked as if she was about to scream at him. Her breathing was starting to be unsteady and loud. "You're hung ova', aren't yeh?" he asked, his mouth forming into a smile. Yoko looked at him, puzzled. "Actually, I don' really feel tha' bad." she replied calmly. "'Ow can yew no' 'ave a 'angova? D'yew 'ave any idea 'ow much yew drank last nigh'?" he said, his eyes bugging out. Yoko shrugged. "Dunno, don' care. I suppose I've go' to ge' ready, then… do yew mind?" She pointed out into the hallway. Murdoc grunted and Yoko closed the door on him. She heard his Cuban heels clack off to somewhere else as she went to find something in her closet to wear. Most of her clothing was packed for the trip that would be around a month. Yoko didn't particularly want to leave her room or Kong, but she had never been to an exotic island before. As far as she knew, she had never been out of the country before in her life. She opened the closet doors and looked inside at the mess. The closet was somewhat more bare than usual. Yoko stuck her head inside and searched for something comfortable to wear. Nothing could be found in the closet except for a pair of old daisy dukes that had to at least be from the 70's. Yoko threw the shorts onto her bed and started digging through the junk one again. She came upon a red t shirt with a scarlet cat on it. It worked, so she put on the odd outfit, combed her hair and went to the bathrooms to brush her teeth. She went into the commercial style bathroom and looked in the mirror. One of the corners had a blood stain on it from who knows where. Yoko picked up her toothbrush that was in its usual spot on the counter and started brushing her teeth silently. Yoko spit the minty backwash into the sink and rinsed her mouth out with water. As she gargled, a light voice entered the bathroom, along with a faint skipping noise on the tile. Yoko turned around to see the Asian Axe Princess frolicking into the room, radio helmet in hand. "Hallo, Yoko-sama!" she called out while waving. Yoko spit out the water into the sink before greeting Noodle with a wave. "Where Yoko-sama go last night?" Noodle asked with a finger on her chin. Yoko froze. "Eh, Noods, yew don' need to worry 'bout tha!" Yoko said. "Did yew need somfing?" She quickly changed the subject. "Hai!" Noodle yelled. She pointed to her hair and ran her fingers through it. "D'yew need 'i combed?" she asked. Noodle nodded. "Awright, 'ang on." Yoko said before scavenging to find a spare brush. After finding one, she started to comb Noodle's short, samurai cut hair. It was very easy to comb. "All done?" Yoko asked while putting down the comb. "Hai!" Noodle squealed while jumping on top of her sister. She crawled up onto her back, perching herself on Yoko's tall shoulders. Yoko cocked an eyebrow at her. Smirking, she walked out of the bathroom, Noodle on her shoulders. She walked to her room to pick up her bags to go downstairs. Her two guitars and her bass were sitting neatly on the floor along with her other bags. Yoko attempted to pick up everything with Noodle still on her back. With three guitars in one hand and her other hand dragging the luggage, she trudged into the trusty lift. "I've neva been so glad that we don' have just stairs." she said to herself as the lift went down to the lobby. Noodle nuzzled her head into Yoko's hair. To her, Yoko always smelled like a pretty cherry blossom, maybe with a hint of cinnamon mixed in. The lift dinged and the duo stepped out, cuter than ever. They stepped into the kitchen and saw two of the three men in the house eating their breakfast. "'Mornin." Yoko saluted. "'Ello, Yoko-luv!" 2D waved. Murdoc leaned up against the counter, smoking a Lucky Lung. "Oi, I told yew no' to smoke in the 'ouse!" Yoko screeched. "Luv, i's my 'ouse, I do wot I wan'." he replied smugly. She glared at him while he took a drag on his cigarette. "Go ge' somfing to eat, we're leavin' in five minutes." Murdoc pointed to the refrigerator. She slipped Noodle off of her shoulders and safely onto the ground before she reached into the fridge to grab an apple. She cut it in half, took out the pit and handed the other half to Noodle, who gobbled it up within a minute. Yoko sat herself down on the table after tossing her finished apple half into the garbage can. "Are we leavin' or wot?" she asked, swinging her legs back and forth. "If Russ would ge' his fa' arse down 'ere, we could." Murdoc extinguished his cigarette as Russel came in almost on cue, dragging Noodle's luggage. "Are we goin', Muds?" he asked as he ruffled Yoko's hair. Yoko giggled while Murdoc sighed and picked up his bass case and luggage. "Le's go, then." He started walking to the front door of Kong. Shrugging, 2D got up, picked up his luggage and followed him. Everyone else followed suit, except Russel carried Noodle's stuff. "Russel-sama?" she said, pointing at her guitar. Russel looked at her, puzzled. "I fink she wants the guitar." Yoko pointed out. Grunting, Russ handed over the guitar to young Noodle, who took it happily and skipped out the door. Everyone got into the red sports car that had just been used last night and drove off to the airport.

* * *

"Noodle, pull up the window." Yoko called from the front seat. "Hai." she whispered. She looked tired from the night before. Miniscule bags were under her eyes while her whole face didn't have the usual glow. "I 'ope i's no' because I wasn't there." Yoko thought, looking down. Noodle tended to go to sleep in her own bed and then wander to her older sister's. "Come un, ge' outta the car!" Murdoc spat. She and 2D were the only ones left inside the car. "Oh." she mumbled. The two got out of the car swiftly and joined the others in entering the large airport. Large, pristine windows looked out onto the runway where massive planes were roaring up into the sky. "Is Damon comin' wif us?" 2D asked. Murdoc glared at him. "Wot d'yew think, Dullard? Do yew see 'im anywhere?" "Shut up, Muds. We need to get through security." Russel replied as he hit Murdoc upside the head. "Wotch i', Lards." Murdoc growled. The five got through security with few complications. Soon, they were sitting somewhat quietly in Terminal B3, waiting for the flight.

"Why're yew so jittery, Mudsie?" the lead guitarist asked. "I'm no' jittery, luv." he shot back, defensively. Yoko looked at Murdoc. His skin was a pale tan-green and he was fidgeting. All five of them were sitting in a row in the busy terminal, doing anything they could to pass the time. It was almost nighttime by now. The plane had been delayed for hours. "Yew need to 'ave a smoke?" she asked. "No." he said. She kept asking questions until the man threw his hands up in the air, yelled, and went outside to smoke. Yoko followed him with her eyes. The next person closest to her was 2D, who was sitting next to Murdoc. The now vacant seat provided an opportunity for the two to talk. "2D, are yew goin' to go swimin' when we ge' there?" she asked. The word swim made him turn paler than usual. "A-Are there whales in Jamaica?" he stuttered. Thinking, Yoko turned her head sideways. "They migrate there in the summa, I fink. They shouldn't be there ye'." she decided. 2D sighed in relief. "Then, in tha' case, I fink I will go swimin'" he said with a crooked smile. "Flights to Jamaica now boarding!" a happy announcer said over the loudspeaker. "Let's go." Russel picked Noodle up and put her on his shoulders so she wouldn't get lost while boarding. "Where's Muds?" asked 2D. Yoko looked around until he could see Murdoc, kissing a blonde flight attendant. "Looks like he's go' a friend." she said, raising her eyebrows. Before they all left, Yoko went to go outside to retrieve Murdoc. She stepped outside and onto the sidewalk by the bus stops. She motioned for him to hurry up and he held up his pointer finger, telling her to wait. Yoko leaned up against the wall of the building, watching Murdoc finish his job. She slipped her number into his back pocket and pecked him on the cheek before she ran to catch her bus. "Wot were yew doin?" Yoko asked. "Wot did i' look like, luv? Jus' doin some business." He winked. "Pervert." she whispered. "Wot?" he yelled. "Come 'un." she said, dragging Murdoc's hand to the gate.

By the time they were on the plane, Yoko had known why Murdoc was so jittery. They all stepped onto the plane. Yoko found her seat by the window while 2D and Murdoc argued over the aisle seat. Russel and Noodle had found their seats in front of Yoko. "You're makin' a scene! Firs' one in the sea' ge's i'." Yoko declared. Murdoc slammed himself down into the seat, forcing 2D to go to the seat in front of Russ and Noodle. He sat down next to a punk guy, who gave him a funny look. As the flight attendant announced how to work the safety features, Murdoc started sweating a bit. Yoko looked away from her window. "M-Muds, you're afraid of flyin', aren't yew?" she asked, trying to contain her laughter. The man turned his head to glare at her. "Don' yew dare anyone, ya hear?" he growled. Yoko turned her head again and looked out the window. "Of course not, Mudsie-luv." she murmured. "Yoko, I swear to Satan, if yew tell Russ…" Russel turned around. "Tell me what?" he asked. "We're currently getting onto the runway. Please be ready for takeoff." a flight attendant announced. Murdoc's eyes bugged out. "You'll be fine." Yoko reassured him with a smile and a pat on his hand. Before she could put her hand back into her lap, the plane started to take off, and Murdoc gripped it tight. "Christ, Muds, d'yew still wan' me to be able to play guitar?" the girl squealed. "Shu' up." he said.

Halfway through the flight, Noodle was asleep, Russel was gorging himself on pretzels and Murdoc was throwing paper airplanes made out of napkins at 2D. The time passed slowly, and Yoko took a long nap to kill some time. By the time she had woken up, it was 4 AM. Unaware of the time, she pulled up the plastic shade that covered the window. It was dark outside. The only light came from the moon and the lights on the sides and wings of the plane. She leaned her head against the side of the window; gazing at the puffy, grayish clouds. There was nothing to do on the plane. She looked at the seat in front of her. A fold out food tray was already sticking out. An empty bag out peanuts rested on it. Below the tray was a compartment filled with magazines. Yoko sighed and picked one up. She flipped through the pages, not wanting to read anything. The pictures were all advertisements. She threw the magazine back into its place and looked at Murdoc. He was sleeping, as was almost everyone else on the plane. Grunting, she turned back to her window. The moon had disappeared, leaving an eerie light inside the plane. The lights on the wings blinked on and off. A sad feeling crept over the girl, making the loneliness that she was feeling become more apparent. "All alone…" she whispered while breathing into the window. She made a smiley face with the condensation that appeared. She whispered "all alone" so many times that it had become a synchronized beat in her head. She tapped her foot, trying to not make much noise. It had made sense to her now; she had thought up a song.

* * *

Yoko had plenty of secrets that she hadn't told anyone. One of them was that she had been writing songs since she was fourteen. She kept a small, black notebook in her pocket, along with a purple ballpoint pen. It never left her sight, and she thought she could never tell anyone. That's how it had been for two years, and she intended to keep it that way. Carefully, the girl slipped the book out of her pocket and started scribbling down everything. Words, guitar chords, bass lines; they were all there. After two hours of working, she had finished the song. Her almost illegible scrawl covered about ten pages. She put her pen down in her lap, thinking of something else to put into it. A rap verse was the only interesting thing that she had in it. She leaned up against the window, thinking of possibilities. She wanted the song to be light and happy at some parts, while other parts were dark and jumpy. She thought long and hard until she could see the sun starting to slightly take over outside. As she watched the sunrise, the yellow and orange clouds seemed to bring all of the idea to her. The feeling of bathing in the light was amazing, and her words spilled out onto the paper. They were coming too fast, and her writing was now completely illegible to anyone but her. She changed the chords for the verse. Yoko looked at what she had written down. Meanwhile, the sunrise had reached its climax. As the girl looked outside, she sang the words to herself. "Close your eyes and see… where there ain't no light…. All you'll ever be…. Come on, save the night, 'cause I don't believe…. When the morning comes it doesn't say an awful lot to me…"

Stuart Pot sat awake at 7 AM, looking out his window. The man who was sitting next to him had become a friend within the few hours. After finding out that he loved Driller Killer, the two men discussed zombie films until midnight, when the man fell asleep. 2D barely slept that night. The sound of a loud, scribbling pen had waked him up at around four. It sounded to him like it was from nearby, but he didn't know. His eyes were about to close until he heard a faint singing coming from two seats back. 2D craned his neck back to see Yoko looking out the window, singing to herself. He opened his mouth to say something to her until he realized that everyone else was still sleeping. He quietly sat down again, being careful not to make a sound. His sneakers squeaked on the plastic-like floor, causing his neighbor to stir. Stuart cowered against the window, trying to look like he did nothing. However, the man grunted and continued his slumber.

By 8 AM, most passengers were awake and eating the small breakfast of a cereal bar and skim milk. Yoko stared at her meal with disgust. She couldn't stand processed food, and to her, even Murdoc's cooking was better than this. "Well, luv, are yew gonna ea' i'?" he asked. Yoko turned her head to see Murdoc with his feet up on the seat ahead of him. "You're gonna ge' yelled a' for doin' tha'." she mumbled. "D'yew think I care?" he replied as she picked up the cereal bar. Yoko took a bite, trying not to notice the taste. "O' course no'." she groaned, her mouth filled with the sickly sweet honey oat flavored bar. A flight attendant stepped from out of the pilot's cabin. Her brown hair was tied into a bun. Her clothes were the stereotypical flight attendant outfit; a navy blue skirt and jacket with a gold wing pin. "We will be landing in Jamaica shortly. Please fasten your seatbelts and gather your things!" she cooed. Some people clapped, some cheered, some groaned. But Yoko just sat there, wanting to get out of the confined space.

The five Gorillaz stepped out of the plane tired and ready for some sunny weather. Yoko shaded her eyes with her hand. It certainly was sunny and hot. "Where are we stayin'?" 2D asked. "Some place called GeeJam Studios." Russel said as they entered the Jamaican airport. It wasn't very crowded or busy. Noodle was chirping something in Japanese while she was holding 2D's hand, while Murdoc and Russel were walking ahead. They got their large amounts of baggage and hailed two cabs to go to their new home.

* * *

"Christ, this place is huge!" Yoko called out from an outside deck. GeeJam Studios was like a mini-Kong with a bit of reggae, ocean, nice weather, and calmness thrown in. The sun was shining on the beach as Yoko perched herself on a lounger on the deck. Calm, Jamaican music thumped through the outside speakers as she stretched out like a cat. She could see a beach from where she was sitting. It was sparsely populated. Only a few teenage boys were in the ocean, which made Yoko blush. She sat up to look around some more until a small Asian girl came bounding into her, knocking her onto the floor. "Noodle, be careful!" she spat. Noodle whimpered, going into a fetal-like position on Yoko's lap. "Wot's wrong, lil' luv?" she asked. Noodle pointed to the beach. "Yew want to go in the water?" After Yoko said water, Noodle nodded vigorously. "Ok, le's see if Russ packed your bathin' suit."

About a half hour later, the five were walking down to the beach; Noodle in a pink swimsuit, Yoko in a green two piece, 2D and Russel in regular swimming trunks, and Murdoc in a pink thong. "Why must you wear tha'? You're pro'lly scarin' Noodle!" Yoko groaned. "Oh, relax, luv." Murdoc replied, a devilish smirk on his face. Noodle ran ahead of everyone, eagerly wanting to get in the water. "Noodle-luv, yew nee' sunscreen." 2D chirped. Noodle looked at him with a blank look on her face, not sure of what to do. "Come here, Baby-girl." Russel cooed. Noodle tiptoed over, letting Russel apply the silky white cream on her body. Noodle flinched at the coolness, but cooperated. Yoko snaked across the hot sand, trying to get into the water before Russel could anything on her. "Get over here, Yoko!" Russel boomed. Cringing, Yoko walked back to everyone else. "Do you really want yer skin sunburned? You're almost paler than 'D!" he exclaimed while rubbing the sunscreen on her back. 2D was rubbing the stuff on his own body, putting it everywhere it would go. "Wot 'bout yew, Mudsie?" Yoko asked, throwing the bottle at him. He caught it, but threw it back at her. "Don' need i'. I tan green." He smirked. "Oh god…" Russel said, rolling his eyes. "Can we go in now?" 2D pleaded, looking to Murdoc. "Woteva." He groaned. Murdoc went to sit in his lounger under a palm tree while everyone else ran into the ocean. It was apparently Noodle's first time in the ocean, and this became apparent when she ran into the water and became frightened of the tide. "Wot's wrong, Noods? Need 'elp?" 2D asked. "Aw, look at 'er. I don' fink she's been in the ocean before!" Yoko said while crouching down beside Noodle. At this point, Russel was floating peacefully on his back, not noticing Noodle's dilemma. "Stu, grab 'er 'and." Yoko instructed. He did as he was told, Yoko doing the same. "Now, lift 'er up when the waves come." she continued. Noodle didn't understand what they were doing at first, but the wave jumping game soon had her squealing and laughing. Murdoc watched from beyond, snapping pictures with a disposable camera Russel had handed to him before going in. Although he longed to go into the water, he thought his tough guy personality wouldn't allow it. "I'll go skinny dippin' lata…" he thought to himself. He watched his band and saw how happy they were. They hadn't been so joyful in months.

* * *

I'm sorry, I didn't edit this. When I type massive chapters over three pages, I get really lazy and don't edit them. This one should be pretty much mistake free, because I wasn't rushing to finish it at 1 AM *coughLIKE LAST CHAPTER!cough* I reread the last chapter and I saw some pretty stupid mistakes. I won't change them because I'm too lazy. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	15. It's the Sweet Sensation, Over the Dub

Hi, guys. Ah, we're at Chapter 15. Most stories are just ending by now, but we're just in the beginning. *insert evil Murdoc laugh here* Sorry for the slight delay, but this took me forever! I didn't edit this. And, just so you guys know, YOKO NOW HAS A STALKER! Kind of, not really. Just a boy who likes her. My first idea was that he be in some sort of Jamaican mafia and that Yoko should get kidnapped, but you can see that obviously doesn't happen. Yeah, that was awkward. Enjoy the chapter.

* * *

Gorillaz had a set routine for the weeks that they recorded in Jamaica. They would wake up late, worked, had lunch, slept, went to the beach, had dinner and then worked until the wee hours of morning. Recording started the day after they arrived, and unlike recording at Kong, everything was much more relaxed. Murdoc had time to bring women home, and Yoko had time to go to the beach with everyone else. A particular crowd of boys were following Yoko and were listening in on the recording sessions, much to Murdoc's disgust. On one particular morning, Yoko woke up to a frightening surprise visitor.

* * *

Yoko squirmed in her bed, the sun lowering into the sky. She pulled herself out of bed, stretching before stepping out. She looked around her room. The furniture was a modern, dark wood, and everything else was a crisp black and white. Yoko walked over to the large dresser that was on the far side of her room. A large mirror rested on top of it, providing a good place to comb her hair. She took her brush out of one of the drawers. The brush swiftly skimmed through her long hair without problems. The guitarist then moved towards her closet, looking for something to wear. She decided to wear her bathing suit, since they would be going outside soon. She picked up her worn out suit and looked it over. Her hands stopped when she felt a hole in the piece of clothing. She cursed loudly and started scouring the closet for something else to wear. She threw things out of the small space like a maniac until she found something in the back of the closet. She shoved her head further back into the closet, letting her eyes wander onto a red bikini with black lace accents. "Bloody 'ell…" she whispered. Her hand pulled it out from the mess it was under. She held it in front of her, liking what she saw. "Russel'll kill me, bu' i's all I go'" she said to herself, sighing. Closing the door to the closet, she shed her nightclothes and changed into the revealing suit. She stepped outside the door and looked into the dresser mirror, amazed at what she saw. Yoko never wore clothing like this before, and she knew why she hadn't. The suit hugged her in just the right places, and it revealed a bit too much for her to be comfortable. She covered up her body with her arms and looked down. "You look good, relax." A boy her age chuckled from the outside deck. Yoko spun around to see one of the boys who had been following her sitting on the railing of her balcony. She turned red with embarrassment and rage. "W-Wot d'yew want?" she yelled. The boy hopped off the balcony, his feet hitting the wood with a loud thump. Yoko stepped back as he entered the room. His brown hair was down to his ears, and his skin was tanned to perfection. Her face was now almost purple as he was only a few feet away from her. "G-Ge' away." she said, trying to sound firm. She stepped backwards, out toward the balcony. "I'm not gonna hurt ya, I promise." he purred. Yoko stopped when she hit the railing. "I asked yew, wot d'yew want?" she yelled back. The boy looked at her seriously now. "I was interested in your band, actually. A couple of my friends an' I have been seeing ya around the beach and the studios." he mused. Yoko glared at him and started walking towards her closet. "I've seen." she growled back. She put on some shorts and a t shirt to cover herself up. "Yew betta leave us alone." she continued. The boy seemed a bit shocked that she didn't like him. "Why would we want to stay away from ya? Yer a pretty girl, ya know." Yoko stepped out of her closet and glared at the boy. "F-Fank yew, bu' I'm no' interested in yew or any of yer goons." The boy stepped closer to her. "I couldn't date yew if I wanted to. I'm going back to England in a few weeks." she said, not noticing the short distance between her and the boy. She turned around to close the closet door. The boy ceased an opportunity and snaked his hands around her waist. "Does that really matter?" he asked. Yoko shifted in his arms. "I'm afraid so." She turned around to look into the boy's eyes. They were icy blue, like her father's. She pushed her head back onto his shoulder. "Wot's your name, anyway?" she asked. "Ellis. And yours?" "Yoko." she replied coolly. "Yoko… I like that." the boy said. He reached his head down and planted a soft kiss on her lips. Before any more words were said, there was a loud bang at the door. "Yoko! We're leavin fer the beach!" Murdoc screamed in his raspy, deep voice. Yoko turned to Ellis. "Go outsid'. I'll be on the beach in a minute." she whispered. "Yoko, who's in there?" Murdoc yelled while slammed on the door. "Nobody of your concern, Mudsie, I'll be ou' in a minute!" she called. Yoko turned to find the boy, but he had disappeared. Grunting, Yoko opened her door to see Murdoc in his usual pink thong bathing suit. "Why 'aven't yew gotten arrested for wearing tha' yet?" she asked, hands on her hips. "Because, luv, I'm Murdoc Niccals, tha's why."

Yoko and Murdoc headed into the kitchen where they found Russel stuffing his face. The kitchen was similar in design to Yoko's room. White marble countertops surrounded the area, and dark wood was the color of the cabinets. "Come on, Lards, we're going. Ge' the Dullard, would ya, Yoko?" he said, shooing her away. Yoko stepped out of the room and went down the hallway to the room that she thought 2D was occupying. She knocked on the door lightly before calling in. "2D, we're leavin fer the beach…" she said. The wind from outside opened the dark wooden door with a flourish. Yoko stepped back before letting herself in. She looked around and saw that she was surrounded with a mess. Clothes were scattered on the floor, along with sheets with countless lyrics upon them. Two melodicas could be spotted, as well as a few keyboards. The guitarist saw that one of the keyboards was still turned on. As she bent down to turn it off, she saw an old Polaroid picture of her and 2D from when they were younger. It must have been from one of the first few days that they were in Kong, because his eyes were still a bit swelled. Yoko picked up the picture and hugged it. Her relationship with 2D was special, and she knew it. He was her big brother; her shoulder to cry on. They were both there for each other when they needed it. Yoko put the photo back in place. A teardrop had found its way onto the picture. She got up and continued to look for the blue haired singer.

The girl looked in almost every other room she would expect to find 2D in. There was no sign of him. There was only one room left to look in: the recording studio. Yoko crossed the beach house and snuck into the studio. Sure enough, Stuart Pot was sitting quietly in the studio, tapping his fingers in a catchy melody on a keyboard. Yoko hid behind the door, listening to the tune. The song was light, bright, and fun to dance to. She tapped her foot to the beat. It sounded a bit like Re-Hash, and a bit like the newer track they had been working on, 19-2000. The man started mumbling a few words until they became lyrics, and he scribbled them down on a yellowed sheet of paper that was in front of him. It was then that Yoko remembered her mission to retrieve 2D. "Stuart…" she whispered. He looked up, slightly startled. "Oh, 'ey lil' luv." he said, looking more perked up. Yoko stepped through the door. "We're goin' down to the beach. Muds wanted me to come an' ge' yew. 'E pro'lly don' wan' yew alone." she chuckled, a wide grin appearing on her face. "I was writin' somefink, bu' I guess I should stop. I've been a' i' all day. Kind o' like somfink my mum said… wot was 'i? I fink it was too much of a good thing can 'urt yew. Tha' seems to be the case with songwritin'." he said. Yoko nodded. As 2D got up from his place on the floor, Yoko's new feelings of love welled up inside of her. "2D, has love ever been confusin' to yew?" she asked innocently. "O'course 'i has. There was Paula, an' then Rachael. I've neva found someone I really loved." he replied, looking down. "Stu, I love yew. Noods loves yew. Everyone yew meet loves yew! You're too nice to not love." Yoko said. There was a dead silence. "I could neva love yew or anyone like I loved Paula an' Rachael." He looked up at her. "I's no' tha'. Somebody loves me. Or, a' least 'e's actin' like i'." Yoko looked down like falling in love was a bad thing. 2D's ebony orbs widened. "D-D'yew love 'im back, lil' luv?" he asked, astonished. His lil' luv was growing up right before his eyes. "I don' know. Tha's why I'm confused. 'E… 'e kissed me." Tears were welling up in her eyes. "'E was one o' the boys who was followin' us around. I-I woke up an' 'e was on my balcony." 2D looked at her, concerned. "Luv, if yew wan' to go an' ge' boys, then go ahead. I know I can' stop yew." Tears were now flowing out of Yoko's eyes. "2D, yew 'ave no idea wot I 'ad to go through when I was wif my father. I's like I've always 'ad boys followin' me. I's worse now. Although, I fink I kinda like i'." Yoko rambled, and 2D listened to every word. "Well, eh, we shoul' ge' goin, righ'? An' woteva yew do, don' tell Muds a word about this guy. Yew hear?" 2D nodded his head, and the pair went off to the kitchen to be nagged at why they took so long.

The band sat out on the dark beach, watching the tide coming in and out. The water lapped at their feet silently. Noodle was frolicking in the sand, trying to find the right place to build a sandcastle. After scouring the beach for a few minutes, she flopped down into the sand, shouting in Japanese. "Are we goin' in the wata?" 2D asked. Everyone looked at him. "I was plannin' on i'." Yoko chirped. "Then come 'un, ge' into yer suit!" Yoko looked down. She moved her feet around in the sand. "Eh, well, I 'ad a problem wif tha'." Yoko laughed nervously. "Oh sweet Satan, wot di'jew do now, Yoko?" Murdoc yelled. "Well, i's a long story, bu' my swimsuit 'ad a hole in 'i. I looked in my closet for somefing else. Turns ou' someone else had lef' an unused swimsuit wif all the tags on an' everyfing. So, I, eh, wore tha!" 2D tilted his head side ways. "Well, luv, wot's wrong wif tha'?" he asked. "Eh, i's a bit, revealing…" she mumbled. "What?" Russel turned from Noodle, who was now close to having a mini tantrum. "I fink I'll jus' go in the water now." Yoko said. She quickly took off her clothes and the swimsuit was revealed. "Oh, sweet Satan… wot're yew doin wearin' tha, Yoko-girl?" Murdoc yelled. "I's no worse than wot you're wearing! Wot was I supposed to wear? I' was the only bathin' suit I found!" she spat back. Murdoc's face was twisted green with rage, not envy. "Tha' don' mean yew go dressin' like a… like tha!" His fists were now balled up in anger. Yoko looked to 2D. "I's no' tha' bad, is 'i Stu?" 2D turned around, blushing. "Muds, i's wot girls 'er age wear nowadays, I fink." Murdoc turned to strangle 2D until Russel held him back. "Baby-girl, is this really the only swimsuit ya packed?" Russel asked. Noodle stopped to look at Yoko. Her eyes widened. "Yoko-sama p-pretty!" she squealed. "Arigatou, Noodle-chan! I didn't fink to pack anyfing else, actually." she replied. "Tell ya what. Before Muds has a heart attack, we can go and getchu a new suit tomorrow." Russel boomed. "Ok, tha' works! This thing is a bi' tight…" Yoko said, adjusting the bottom part of the suit. With that, everyone but Murdoc raced into the water.

The Satanist had found a comfortable spot to rest under a palm tree with a bottle of rum in his hand. He sat there until Russel came out for a food break. When the drummer looked over at Murdoc, he saw him in a dead sleep. Sneakily, he picked the bassist up carefully, trying hard not to wake him. He completed the awkward scene by rushing to the ocean and throwing Murdoc into a deep part, making him wake up instantly. As everyone stopped goofing around and started laughing, Murdoc cursed out everyone thoroughly.

After an hour or two at the beach, night had fully settled on the island. That meant one thing; it was time to go inside and record again. Murdoc prodded everyone inside and into the recording studio, where Dan the Automator was mixing all of the completed tracks. Yoko's wet clothing dripped onto the floor as she bobbed her head to the beat. "You guys are actually almost done with the album." Dan said as he turned around in the spinning office chair. "Really?" 2D asked. "No, wot d'yew fink, Faceache?" Murdoc mocked in a shrilly voice. 2D wrinkled his eyebrows but said nothing. "I'm gonna go an' change outta these wet clothes. I'll be back in a few." Yoko waved, and marched off to her bedroom on the other side of the studio hotel. The dark shadows were becoming more intimidating now that she knew that other people were around the place looking for her. Yoko turned a corner and went into her room. The curtains were billowing because of the wind pouring in from the outside balcony. The breeze felt cold upon the guitarist's skin, but she didn't mind. She continued on her way to the closet, where she found a pair of cargo shorts and an old band t shirt. It was very simple and appeared to be comfortable. She closed the closet door, changed, and threw the wet bathing suit across the barren rack in the closet. She turned and went to close the door to the balcony. Due to lack of attention, her side jabbed into the nightstand by her bed. Yelping, she grabbed her side and acted like rubbing it would make the pain go away. While a fresh bruise starting blossoming on her left side, she looked down to see her black book on the floor. Yoko picked it up quickly before she could forget it was there and continued to go and close the door. She looked outside at the rising tide. It captivated her eyes, going back and forth. She must have been standing in the door for a few minutes until she heard someone calling. "Oi, Yoko Ono!" a deep voice said from on the ground. "Tha's no' my name!" Yoko automatically retorted. She ran out to the deck and looked down to see Ellis resting under a nearby palm tree in the grass. "Wot d'yew wan' now?" she groaned, tired of the boy stalking her. At least, it seemed like stalking to her. "I thought you were gonna come and pay me a visit down here." He grinned. Yoko watched the boy. He was clad in only a pair of shorts similar to her own, and his back was almost carved into the palm tree. He fit into it like a puzzle piece. Yoko looked around to see if anyone else was there. When she saw nobody, she jumped off of the balcony and landed swiftly onto the ground. The feeling of rushing through the air left the girl in almost a revitalized state as she approached the boy she fancied and loathed. "I told yew to ge' away from me! Do yew no' understand wot tha' means? I 'ave a recordin' session to ge' back to, you gormless wanker!" she screeched. The boy didn't look all too shocked. "I'm a wanker, eh?" he said while getting up from his perfect position under the tree. "You'd betta believe i'." she growled back. "I still think you're cute." he purred. His arms found their way around her waist. "Did I give yew permission to do tha?" she asked curtly. His grip eased on her. "Do I have permission?" Yoko softly nodded her head, unable to control her actions. Sweat formed at the top of her head. She felt like half of her wanted to be in the position was in, and half of her didn't. "I r-really need ta go back to recordin'. We're about to finish the album an'…" The boy stopped her. "Go." He sighed. He slipped his phone number in her pocket and Yoko literally ran away. She sprinted quickly back to her safe haven; her family.

* * *

"Yoko, where've yew been? I' don' take a half hour to change yer clothes!" Murdoc screamed. He was sitting in a chair next to Dan, editing one of the final tracks. "Eh, Murdoc, I don't really want to say this, but there's something wrong with the, eh, Clint Eastwood track." Murdoc turned to Dan, infuriated. "Wot the bloody 'ell is wrong with i' now?" he yelled. Dan backed away from the bassists, who was now seething. "Well, uhm, I deleted the part of the track with your voice in it because I thought it sounded a bit unattractive. People aren't going to want to listen to it. I was thinking about putting a rap verse in it instead." Dan looked away and cringed. Murdoc's eyes bulged out. He reached out to attack the poor producer, arms flailing. When Dan saw Murdoc rise from the ground in Russel's grip, he sighed in relief and thanked the large man. "I think a lil' rap in it would be great!" he said, smiling. Murdoc was thrown onto a sofa, where he started twanging away on his bass in anger. "Where are we gonna find a rapper, though?" Russel asked himself. He paced around the room until he sat in the couch parallel to the one Murdoc was occupying. Almost instantly, he fell asleep. "Tha' was odd…" Yoko mumbled, her guitar hanging from the strap she secured around her shoulders. Suddenly, a noise came from Russel, and a blue mass emerged from his head. Noodle, who was tuning her guitar, screamed in terror and delight when a blue ghost showed himself. Murdoc snapped out of his trance and asked the ghost multiple questions, all with some sort of profanity in them. The ghost rapper didn't respond, and instead, floated into the recording booth. "Wot d'yew fink you're doin'? Ge' outta there!" Murdoc hollered. Instinctively, Dan turned on the sound equipment, and the recording light went on. The blue man started rapping about himself inside the booth, making everyone's jaws drop. The part happened to be perfect for Clint Eastwood. After a few minutes of a shocking rap solo, he stepped through the door and looked at everyone. "Uh, yo, I'm Del." he said, waving. "Yew! You're the one who was Russel's best friend!" Yoko called out, pointing her finger at him. "Yup. And your Yoko, the demonic guitar genius. I know who all of ya'll are. I've been in Russel's head for a while, now." He sat down on a chair. "Wait, wot d'yew mean Yoko's demonic?" 2D asked. "Eh, yew didn' know? She's a demon kid. Special powers, yeah? Almost whacked ou' 'er father, too." Murdoc chuckled. 2D's eyebrows furrowed. "Y-Yew neva told me tha', Yoko-luv." he said, his voice cracking. Yoko turned so that her back faced everyone else. "I wanted to keep i' a secret. I' was for yer own good." she mumbled, a bit of sadness audible in her voice. "Wot would I 'ave done if yew went out and attacked me or somefink?" 2D retorted. Yoko turned to say something. "Yew know wot, 2D, I don' know, an' I don' wan' to talk about i'." she snarled. Noodle's smile faded from her face as she saw her two band mates fight. As the two fought about Yoko's demonic powers, Noodle started to cry. "Kenka wa yamero!" she screamed. The two stopped and looked at the Asian Axe Princess. Her face was tear stained and red. "Noodle, please don't cry, luv." Yoko whispered. "Stu, I'm sorry I didn't tell yew. I didn' wan' anyone to know an'…" He stopped her. "No, 'lil luv, i's fine." Yoko nodded awkwardly. "Fanks for understandin', then."

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Gorillaz stayed in Jamaica until May 7th, 2000. On that day, all of the singing and recording was complete. Russel and Noodle returned to Kong after the album was mastered, and Yoko, Murdoc and 2D stayed on the island for an extended vacation of their own.

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Squee, I like this chapter. Kind of, but not really. I think that most of the chapters are pretty bad. I'm going to the beach on Thursday, so hopefully I can get some sort of ideas for the story from it. Ciao!


	16. Where did I go Wrong?

Hi guys. Sorry for the lack of updates, I was on vacation. School also starts on Wednesday, so get used to slow updates. :(

And the past few chapters haven't gotten any reviews! That makes me sad. Don't make me sad. Please.

Enjoy the chapter.

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"When is the album coming ou'?" Yoko whined. Murdoc, Yoko and 2D sat at the table in the kitchen while a butler served them breakfast. Murdoc had hired him a few days after Noodle and Russel had left. He thought that money didn't matter anymore because they were "almost famous". They had gone back onto a normal schedule when recording ceased, and all seemed fairly normal. "Shu' up. There too many EP release dates I need ta' figure ou' now." Murdoc grumbled, his hands rubbing his temples. "I was finkin' about early 2001. March or somfin'." he said. 2D began devouring his plate of eggs and bacon in front of him, while Yoko just picked at her food. Another boy asked her to go out with him yesterday. That had been the third one that week, and it was only Tuesday. Yoko tried to keep the boys that were hitting on her away from Murdoc, but she knew he knew. A few people had even asked her out in front of him, causing the bassist to start seething with anger and almost have a heart attack. He had never had a discussion with her about who she could or couldn't date, and the only reason was that he feared to do so. He didn't know if she would retaliate or accept the boundaries that he would set for her. He figured that it was best to ignore the subject and get back to figuring out what needed to be solved, and, at the moment, that was tour and EP release dates. "Will that be all?" the butler asked monotonously. "Oi, can I 'ave some tequila? Jus' bring the 'ole bottle, will ya?" Murdoc hollered at the man. The butler sighed and accepted his command. Yoko pushed at her bacon and ate a small piece, trying to look hungry. 2D, on the other hand, had finished his own plate, his stomach yearning for the food that occupied the guitarist's plate. She looked up at him, reading his thoughts. "D'yew wan' i'? I'm no' very hungry." she asked. 2D nodded madly, gobbling up what was left on her plate. "Sweet Satan, Yoko-girl, yew 'aven't eaten in days. Yew anorexic now or somefin'?" Murdoc asked. Yoko looked up at the man. "I've been a bit stressed lately, tha's all. An' i's no' like I 'aven't eaten anyfing!" she uttered loudly. "Wot's so stressful tha' coul' make yeh stop eatin'?" the blue haired man asked. The girl looked down, not wanting to reply. "B-Boys." she said slowly. Murdoc looked up from his scribbled on paper. "I knew this was comin'." he mumbled. "Wot's tha' supposed to mean?" she asked. "Look, luv, I don' wanna upset ya, bu' if I 'ad i' totally my way, yew wouldn't be datin' anyone." the bassist said while picking at the food that was in front of him. "Mudsie, why woul' a person like yew say tha'? Look a' yew! Yew shag a girl almos' every night!" she said. 2D tilted his head. "Don'chu ge' i', lil' luv? I fink Muds is actually carin' about someone otha than 'imself fer once!" the singer cheered. "Shu' yer mouth, Faceache." Murdoc grunted. A smile was soon upon his face when the butler returned with two bottles of tequila in his hand. The man snatched it from the butler's grasp and immediately started drinking. "I know nobody else who'd drink two bottles 'o tequila at 10 AM." Yoko said, her face on the table. "An', uh, now tha' were on the subject, I was meaning to ask yeh… can I go ou' with a guy today? He asked me ou' yesterday an' is comin' to pick me up a'noon." she continued. 2D noticed that her face was as red as a tomato. "Sure, lil' luv, go ahead." 2D answered with a smile. Yoko got up from her chair. "Thank yew, 2D!" she said in a singsong voice. She kissed him on the cheek and skipped out of the room with a smile. Meanwhile, Murdoc's hands were clenched into fists. "I didn' tell ya to say yes, Dullard." he growled. Knowing it was time to leave, 2D scrambled out of his chair and went to the safety of his own room before Murdoc could get any angrier.

Sure enough, at noon, the doorbell rang. The butler was nowhere to be found, so 2D went downstairs to answer it himself. A man about as tall as him was standing there. He had short red hair and emerald green eyes like Noodle's. "Uhm, hello. I'm here to pick up Yoko." the man said smiling. "O-Ow old are yew?" the azure haired singer asked. "Twenty. Is that a problem?" the man asked. "Eh, no, no' that I know of. Eh, yew can come in, I guess." 2D ushered the tall man in and directed him to the kitchen. Murdoc was still occupying the table when they got there. Murdoc looked up from his "work", annoyed with what he saw. "Who the 'ell is tha'?" he asked. "Eh, this is Yoko's d-date" 2D said, expecting to be punched or attacked. Murdoc uttered multiple profanities before roughly introducing himself to the guy. "I'm Murdoc Niccals, the bass god of Gorillaz. An' tha's Faceache, ova there." he said, concluding introductions. "Eh, i's really Stuart. Bu' people call me 2D." 2D corrected. "Uh, where's Yoko?" the man asked, obviously confused. "She should be in 'er room. But yew can't go up there." Murdoc said, trying to focus on his work. The man almost asked why, but he moved on to another subject. "Oh, er, ok. My name is Deryck, by the way." he said while scratching his head. Nobody responded to him, so he figured that it was best that he shut up. "An', before she comes down, lemme tell ya now, punk, if yew even dare try anyfing with her, I'll beat yew senseless. Yew understand?" Murdoc growled. "Y-Y-Yes sir!" Deryck squeaked. As if she was on cue, Yoko stepped into the kitchen, looking for her date. "Hi, Deryck! Did those two scare yew a bi'?" she asked while pointing at her other band members. Chuckling, the boy shook his head no. "Eh, we'll be ou' til 'bout threeish, I fink." she continued. "Woteva. Yew two kids 'ave fun." the bassist said, not looking up from his work. Yoko kissed both men on the cheek before leaving for her first official date.

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"I've been really likin' tha' kind of soulful, dubby stuff lately. Like, with a bit of new wave, punk kind of thing to it. I's 'ard to find, bu' i's really grea' if yew ever hear somefing like i'." Yoko said while sipping on a cup of lemon tea. He had taken her to a small café in downtown Kingston, a few miles away from the studio. They were sitting at a small table with other people all around them, all crammed into other tables. "I never really listened to that kind of thing, but I get what you're sayin'." Deryck responded. He was quite surprised at the girl's music tastes and her general interests. She told him about Gorillaz and their album. "I don' 'ave the same music tastes as mos' people. 'Ow 'bout the Clash? Yew like them?" she asked. The boy looked at her. "Who're they?" Yoko looked down at her tea. "Nevamind." she grumbled. Deryck looked away, not sure of what to say next. An awkward silence wavered over the young couple as they sat in the loud coffeehouse. An obnoxious yell broke the stillness of their corner of the room. "Oi! Is that you, Yoko Ono?" a boy's voice called. Of all the people on the island, it was Ellis that trotted over from the other side of the shop, bumping into a few people on the way. Yoko turned her head instinctively, trying to avoid the other boy. "Wot d'yew want?" Yoko groaned as he approached the table. He had a sly smile on his face. "Ya got a new guy, don'cha?" he snickered, his brown hair bobbing up and down. Deryck watched the scene with a confused look on his face. "You didn't call me, Yoko. That makes me pretty upset." Ellis said, making an overly dramatic sad face. "I didn't for a reason, yew ugly git. Now sod off!" she grumbled. He put his arms up in defeat and walked away curtly, unaware of what could possibly happen to him if he didn't. "Disregard 'im. He's… an ex of mine, I guess yew could say." Yoko said while putting another sugar cube into her tea. Deryck simply nodded his head in understanding as the wave of silence brushed over the table once again. Yoko looked around at the scene. She saw lovey dovey couples holding hands and feeding each other cake, while kids were running in circles around the shop, their parents trying to catch them. Yoko laughed on the inside at everything; such as how everything in the room seemed awkward. There was the silence, the couples being too romantic in public, the rambunctious children… it was almost too much for her. A ringing noise broke the silence. Yoko looked around and felt something vibrating in her pocket. "Oh, I'm really, really sorry! I have to take this, it's 2D!" she said. She wandered off to the ladies' room and answered the phone. "'Ello?" she answered. "Yoko! Murdoc's comin' afta' meh!" 2D screamed. His voice was full of panic and was more shrill than usual. "2D! Relax! Go in yer room an' lock the door!" she whispered. A tall woman flashed Yoko an annoyed look before walking out of the bathroom. Yoko heard loud footsteps and yelling on the other end of the phone. A door slammed and a lock clicked. "O-Ok, e's gone, fer now." Yoko leaned against the wall. "If 'e comes, throw the phone a' 'im, I'll talk some sense inta 'im." she said. A loud banging was heard and 2D screamed. "2-2D! Are yew awright?" she asked. Murdoc uttered multiple profanities before almost hanging up the phone. "Muds! Wait!" Yoko screamed before covering her mouth. "Oi! Who're yew?" a scratchy voice screeched into the phone. Yoko jumped a bit before replying. "Mudsie, please don' 'urt 'im!" she murmured. Back at the studios, Murdoc heard the voice of his guitarist on the phone and released the grasp he had on 2D's shirt. Yoko heard a loud thump on the ground over the phone. Sweat was running down 2D's forehead as he eagerly watched the bassist's expression soften. The cerulean haired singer could now hear Yoko screaming over the phone. "No, I didn' drop 'im!" Murdoc lied. There was a silence. "Yea, yea… woteva. Ok… bye." Murdoc threw the phone at 2D, who surprisingly caught it, before stomping out of the room. "M-Murdoc?" 2D squeaked. The Satanist's face popped in the door. "Why do yew le' Yoko… manipulate yew like tha'?" Murdoc looked at the man. "Yew don' get i', do yew, Faceache? I's the other way around." he said. 2D looked at him with confusion. "I'm goin' to a bar."

Yoko flipped her phone closed and exited the restroom. At this point, she wasn't concerned that her date had gone badly anymore. She navigated away from the hectic children running around and sat back at her table. Deryck was waiting for her patiently. "Someone bought a drink for ya. I think it was that guy from earlier." he said. Yoko looked at the shot of vodka in front of her. "'E couldn't 'ave gotten much cheaper." she chuckled. Yoko drank the shot within seconds. "Well, shall we go now?" she asked. "Sure. Wanna go for a ride first?" he asked. Yoko nodded and they ran out of the shop. The bright sun greeted them thoroughly as they strutted out of the place. Deryck took his blue motor scooter out of park and got on. Yoko grabbed the extra helmet from the side of the handlebars. "Ready?" he asked. She saw he was already on the bike, ready for her to accompany him. "Yep!" she squealed. Yoko hopped on behind Deryck and grabbed his waist awkwardly. The engine roared to life and the couple took off without a care in the world. "Don' be afraid." he whispered. His voice was barely audible. Yoko got the signal and wrapped her arms tighter around the boy. She had a feeling they were going to have a good time.

The couple had settled down at a small park by the ocean, where they set up a blanket and sat down. "I's really pretty ou' 'ere." Yoko said. Her fingers were tracing small patterns onto the checkered blanket. "I's a shame nobody else is 'ere. They don' know wot they're missin" she continued. Deryck nodded. "Yoko, I have somethin' to ask ya." Yoko redirected her gaze from the beach to the boy sitting next to her. "Ask away!" she said. "I really like ya, you know. And I know this is only the first date, but…" He stopped speaking and kissed Yoko directly on the lips. "D-Deryck?" Yoko's eyes bugged out slightly. "I'm sorry." he said. "No, is' not that. I thought I gave a pretty bad first impression, tha's all. I didn' think yew liked me a' all, actually!" Yoko exclaimed. She was laughing softly when Deryck kissed her lightly on the cheek. "Can we go 'ome now? I's getting kinda hot." she asked.

Yoko waved monotonously as Deryck zipped away on his motor scooter. She thought the date went alright, other than the fact that she had rejected him completely. She didn't think he was going to call at all. She stormed into the studio and threw her bag on the floor. It skidded across the room before the butler picked it up and neatly placed it onto a side table. She stormed into the kitchen and sat down at the table. Nobody was there, so she picked up and apple and dived into it. She devoured it in only a few bites. "Wotchu doin', Yoko-luv?" Yoko turned around and saw 2D standing in the doorway. He walked over to her, his lanky frame almost falling over. "Nofin' much. Just sittin' 'ere... by the way, did Muds 'urt yew afta I hung up the phone?" 2D scratched his head. "Nope. 'E go' up an' left." Yoko cocked an eyebrow. "Really?" she asked. 2D nodded. "Hmph, tha's somefing new." 2D nodded again and picked up the last apple from the basket in the middle of the table. "So, eh, 'ow did the date go?" he asked. Yoko put her finger to her chin. "It depends on 'ow yew define good. 'E kissed me, bu' I pretty much ruined it." she replied casually. 2D furrowed his eyebrows. "Yew don' like 'im, do yeh?" Yoko looked up. "No, I don'." she groaned. "I guess I jus' 'ave to look around." 2D continued to look at the girl. "Why d'yew need to go around wif all of these boys? Yew neva used to be like this back a' Kong." Yoko grimaced while trying to avoid the truth of the situation. "Yew guys sheltered me from mos' o' the things outsid' o' Kong. Come to fink of 'i, I could go a few days without stepping ou'side when I was there!" 2D nodded his head in agreement. "Living in a houseful of overprotective men ain't easy, believe it or no'." she continued. A silence fell over the room. "We're overprotective of yeh…? I didn' notice." The phone rang suddenly, which made 2D jump. Yoko made a mad dash for the cordless phone so she could get it before the butler. "'Ello?" "Yes, is this, uh, Murdoc Niccals?" Yoko tried her best to fool the lady on the other end of the line. "Why yes, 'i is. Wot d'yew wan'?" The woman coughed a bit before answering. "Well, Mr. Niccals, Damon Albarn has cancelled your plans to work with Paulo Skinbacio on your Tomorrow Comes Today video. He says he wants you to work with Jamie Hewlett instead." Yoko's jaw dropped at the sound of Mr. Hewlett's name. She had secretly been collecting every issue of his comic _Tank Girl_ since 1991. "Y-Yes! Of course, absolutely! Goodbye!" Yoko hung up on the assistant to Damon Albarn, who was unaware of who Gorillaz actually were. Yoko squealed with happiness as she put the phone back in the receiver. "Wot're yew so excited 'bout?" the keyboardist asked. "Jamie Hewlett!" 2D gave her a confused look as she scuttled off to her room.

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Later that day, Murdoc came home drunk and had a panic attack that Yoko had changed the deals for the video. Once he was sober, he gave into her ideas. After a night at the beach (Where Murdoc fell from a palm tree and landed flat on his back) they went home to Kong Studios, where they gave their plans to the rest of the band. The video was shot the next day, and Gorillaz were one step closer to success. Yoko didn't call any of her suiters, either.

**December 6th, 2000**- _Worldwide Media Debut in Dazed and Confused Magazine_

**December 27th, 2000**- _Tomorrow Comes Today EP is released_

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Sorry if the past few chapters have been a bit rough... they were rushed. I really was getting bored of the Jamaica chapters. Things should continue to get more epic with the release of the _Tomorrow Comes Today_ EP and stuff. So, may I make a proposition with you? If you guys give me at least 5 reviews, I'll have the next chapter up faster than usual. A lot faster. I promise. R&R PLEASE!


	17. Our Hearts Were Ringing

Before I say anything else, school has hit me hard and I barely have time to update.

Anyway, thanks for the reviews. Since the 5 reviews came fast, I want at least 8 reviews this time. Is that cool?

Oh, and a good fanfic you should check out is "We are the Happy Landfill" by Oh, by Charlii-chan and Stu-Pot. It deserves sooo many more reviews!

Another thing, if you don't know what an ocarina is, go and look it up before you read this chapter. You won't understand if you don't know. Enjoy the chapter, and remember, I REQUIRE MORE REVIEWS!

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The EP had been released and the interviews were published. Gorillaz were now even closer to fame than ever before. Yoko was glad to be back at Kong. The beaches of Jamaica had given her some bad sunburns and the heat was starting to get to her head. Yoko was also now a year older and wiser at seventeen. Currently, it was February of 2001, and Yoko was in her room, hanging up the framed copy of their magazine cover from last year. She had found it on the floor later that day and decided to hang it up. She stuck the thumbtack firmly in the wall and put up the picture. There was barely room for it with her other posters and stuff in the way. Yoko sighed and flopped onto her bed. Without something needing to be done, whether it be going out to get the groceries or helping Noodle clean her room, Yoko was bored out of her mind. The guitarist squeezed her eyes shut. "Watashi wa taikutsu shite nda yo!" she screamed into a pillow. She flipped herself off of her bed, hitting her head in the process. She avoided cursing since her door was wide open. Yoko crawled away from her bed and shut the door, sighing. She looked around her room for something to do before she became insane from chronic boredom. She looked around her room for her guitar. There was nothing there; she had forgotten she had left her guitars in the studio. Yoko grumbled in distress. She looked in the corner of her room and spotted her bass. She cocked an eyebrow; Yoko was sure she hadn't seen it there five minutes ago. She hadn't been able to play her bass as much as she liked due to Murdoc's constant pestering for her to practice her guitar. Yoko crawled over to the bass guitar and picked it up. She quickly tuned it before climbing back onto her bed to play a short acoustic bass line. As much as she didn't like acoustic, the melody she was twanging out flowed smoothly through her mind. It was like heaven.

* * *

Yoko played until her fingers bled. She looked down onto the nickel strings. They were lightly stained red along with her fingers. She swished the blood off with the unwounded part of her finger and proceeded to leave her room to find some bandages. Yoko wandered off and took the lift down to the kitchen. She had no idea how disheveled she looked. As she stepped into the dirty kitchen, she saw Murdoc passed out drunk with beer cans all over. The ashtray beside him was totally full. Yoko smirked as she saw drool drip onto the table. She looked at the mess blankly until she mentally forced herself to clean it up. She walked over to the table and emptied the overflowing ashtray into the garbage, not caring that some of the grey bits got into her wounded fingers. The bottom of the tray revealed a satanic star etched into it. Yoko moved her finger across the symbol, feeling the indentations and lines. She quickly set it down beside Murdoc and ruffled his hair. The bassist flinched slightly in his slumber, making Yoko retreat to the side of the kitchen doorframe. When he grunted and continued snoring, she looked to her bruised fingers and tried to find something in the medicine closet the patch them up. She climbed on the recently cleaned counter and sat on her knees. A roll of gauze fell out promptly, along with some medical cream. Yoko hopped off the counter like a cat to pick up the medical supplies. She sat on the table and opened the squeeze bottle full of cream and dotted it gently on her right hand. The blood had dried and she was in no mood to wipe it off. She wrapped the gauze carefully around her fingers, being careful not to miss any small section of any of the bruises. She cursed under her breath when she realized that she had forgotten the tape to wrap up the gauze. Yoko wandered back to the cabinet, attempting to balance the loose gauze on her finger. The one on her pointer finger fell off, leaving only a small bit of the cream left on her finger. Her left hand formed a fist before she reached up in the cabinet to retrieve the last thing she needed. The tape fell onto her head with a thud. She sighed and picked it up off of the floor and started to wrap her fingers. After replacing the gauze on her pointer finger, Yoko wrapped every finger on her right hand in the tape she had found. Her fingers looked like puffy marshmallows. She put her pinky in her mouth and bit down a bit. The gauze tasted bad, but she didn't care. Yoko's stomach growled loudly. She hadn't eaten for hours. She slowly went to pick up a box of Noodle's Yan-Yan from the counter. She opened the container and took out one of the cookie sticks and dipped it into the chocolate. Gently, she placed it in her mouth, sucking the chocolate off before chewing the cracker like food slowly. She hoped that Noodle wouldn't mind that her last Yan-Yan package was "stolen". Realizing that she could now go out in public to get more of Noodle's food, she jumped at the opportunity and grabbed the car keys from their holder on the wall. They jingled loudly, making Murdoc stir once again. He grumbled and picked his head up. His eyes had deep, purple bags under them. His hangover was raging over his system like a hurricane. "Wot the 'ell are yew doin'?" Yoko looked up at the bassist. "N-Noodle ran ou' o' her Yan-Yan. I was gonna go ge' more for 'er. I'd be dead meat if she knew I had the las' one." Murdoc huffed. "Why can' yew jus' go an' do wot normal girls do… go shoppin' fer clothes or somfin'. You've been sittin' 'ere all day." he grumbled. "I don' like shoppin' alone." she retorted. "Need a second opinion…" she added. "Why don' yew take Two-Dents? He likes queer stuff like tha'." Yoko smirked. "Jus' for tha', I should make yew come wif me." Murdoc's eyes bugged out. "Tha's no' happenin', luv." "We can go to a bar when we're finished." "Throw in a pack of cigarettes and i's a deal."

The duo stepped out into the car park, not caring what time it was. Murdoc headed towards the Astra until the guitarist stopped him. "Do we 'ave to take tha' car?" Murdoc turned around. "The other car is outta gas." he grumbled. Yoko looked around the massive concrete room for a vehicle that would be usable. Every corner seemed to be filled with old cars that didn't work until her eyes stumbled upon an old motorcycle. Its red exterior gleamed along with the shiny black leather that covered the seat. It seemed brand new, but Yoko remembered seeing it there a while back. "Wot 'bout tha'?"she asked while pointing at the vehicle. Murdoc turned his head. "Doubt it works. Don' have they key for i', either." "Tha's because the key is righ' 'ere!" Murdoc turned around to see Yoko sitting on her knees by the red bike."Fine, ge' outta the way!" he said. He shooed the girl away and put the key in the ignition. It roared to life instantly, making shivers go down Yoko's spine. "Getting on?" Yoko looked up and nodded. She climbed on behind Murdoc and latched her arms around his waist. "Shouldn't we be wearin' helmets?" she asked. Murdoc ignored her as they sped off, away from the dreary, grey, Kong Studios.

After an hour of driving, Yoko still clung tightly to Murdoc as they entered the London vicinity. The ride there was silent; the engine was too loud for anything to be heard. The sky was still foggy and boring, but things seemed brighter in London. Yoko had only been there a handful of times. She had wanted to live there since she was a little girl. They came closer and closer to the center of the city and Murdoc slowed down only a bit. Yoko poked him in the back when he started speeding. He still didn't listen to her. They had entered the middle of the metropolis within minutes and were now in the crowded, narrow streets of London. The two Gorillaz members looked extremely out of place when they parked in front of an extremely posh store. "Go on, luv. I'll go find a bar, pick up some chicks or somefin'." He started the engine again and stopped it when Yoko didn't get off. "Come 'un! I don' 'ave all day!" he screeched, looking back at the girl. Her expression wasn't a good one; she looked like she was going to tear his head off. "I thought yew were comin' in with me." she replied back. Murdoc looked at the girl. He was smirking on the inside. "No way am I comin' in there. I's go' all this posh shi'!" Murdoc complained until Yoko dragged him into the store that was in front of them. It was named after some designer nobody had ever heard of. A saleslady instantly rushed over to them. She was tall, blonde, and appeared to be ditzy. "Oh, uh, hello! Welcome to the LaBelle Lavallée Shop in London. How c-can I help you?" She had a strong American accent. Murdoc sauntered over to her quickly. "The lil' missy ova' 'ere needs some clothes." He pointed at Yoko. Murdoc got closer to the flustered girl. "D'yew think yew can 'elp me?" he whispered in her ear. The girl giggled and pulled out a measuring tape. She started towards Yoko, almost tripping in her high heels. "W-Wot d'yew need tha' for?" Yoko asked. The woman started measuring Yoko's waist and writing down numbers. "Measurements to determine your size, honey. It'll only take a second." she said as she wrapped the measuring tape around the guitarist's chest. Yoko fidgeted a bit. "I'll go and see what we have for you, sugar. I'll be back in a few." She winked at Murdoc and disappeared into a back room. Yoko now had a time to look around the place. It was indeed extremely posh and modern. Every aspect of the interior was a plain black and white. Rich looking people were flittering around doing who knows what. Murdoc settled himself into a white leather chair and viewed all of the other women that were shopping in the store. There were only a few. All of them seemed to be getting excellent service. Every one of them stood atop a small, circular podium and spun around in the 360 mirrors. The blonde woman reemerged from the back room holding mountains of clothing. "D-Do I have to try on all of tha'?" Yoko asked to no one in particular. The lady let out a smile. "Don't like trying on clothes, eh? I think I can change that, sweetie." she giggled. The piles of clothing were things Yoko would never, ever wear. None of the clothing had color. It was all either tight fitting or extremely loose. Pieces of jewelry hung off of it, some of the shirts even had odd pins attached to them. "Right this way!" Yoko was led in front of a dressing room which appeared to be quite large. The woman followed Yoko into the room with the mountain of clothes and stood there. "I can change by myself, if yew don' mind." The lady looked confused. "Most of our clients request assistance." she replied blankly. "Just try on this dress first." A black and white dress was thrown at Yoko. It was somewhat short and flowy; the patterns wound around the whole thing. As she changed, she thought of how much she didn't belong in here. She wasn't girly at all. The dress had fit her perfectly. It was so perfect it scared the guitarist a bit. There was a knock on the door of the spacious changing room. "Miss, are you done yet?" Yoko spun around to face the mirror. "I don' wanna come ou'" she mumbled. "Come 'un!" Murdoc grumbled. He obviously was bored of the women in there already and wanted some alcohol. "He's like a child…" she thought. Sighing, Yoko stepped out of the room and onto the podium like all of the other people at the other stations. "Oi, luv, i's no' tha' bad." Yoko turned around to see Murdoc looking at her. "Why would yew say somefing like tha'?" she asked. The blonde girl was looking at Murdoc for some sort of response. "Well, i's the truth. Yew make a big fuss 'bout all this crap fer no reason." he said while taking out a cigarette. "You're jus' getting' more an' more complicated ev'ry day, aren't yeh?" she asked. Murdoc lit his cancer stick, much to the dismay of everyone else. "O'course, luv. Believe wot yew wan'."

"I didn't know yew actually had an opinion on clothing, Mudsie." she said as they walked silently down the busy sidewalks of the center of London. "Does i' really look like I do?" Yoko looked at the bassist beside her. He was wearing his usual; a grey sweater, black jeans, Cuban heels and an inverted cross. "No' really…" she responded. There was an awkward silence as the two stepped into an older looking record shop on the corner of a bustling street. Soft reggae music played through speakers, and it seemed as if the two had stepped into another world. The place had shelves of older records and newer CDs. The walls were a dingy green color. The light was reflecting across multiple things in the room, making things sparkle and glitter. Only a few people were in the shop. Murdoc went to go and look for vintage metal rock records while Yoko drifted over to the alternative section. She flipped through the multiple stacks of CD's, not finding much. She sighed and looked over at the person next to her. He was a taller guy, about 6'4, and was looking through a large stack of Blur CD's. "Yew like Blur?" she asked with a smile on her face. The man looked at her. "O'course. They're my favorite!" Yoko nodded. He had spiked brown hair and was wearing a plaid shirt. His glasses were rectangular, and tattoos adorned his body. "They're pretty epic. Yew go' any other good bands tha' yew know of. I've kinda heard i' all, I guess. Wot's your name?" The man flipped through the stacks of records and handed out an Indie band's debut album. "They're fantastic if yew wan' somethin' new to listen to… an' I'm Chris. Yew are…?" Yoko took the CD and scanned the tracks. "I' looks nice. Fank yew! I'm Yoko." The tattooed boy blushed a bit. "'Ow old are yew, if yew don' mind me askin'?" Yoko asked as she looked through more albums and singles. "Oh, 'm 18. "Ow' 'bout yew?" Yoko cocked an eyebrow. "17. Yew certainly look older than 18, though!" she chuckled. "Everyone says tha'! I've been ou' on me own since I was… 16, I think. Go' a job doin wot I love, an' i's been great ever since." "Wot's tha'?" "Tattooing. Best job in the world." Yoko's eyes went slightly wide at his response. Yoko had longed for a tattoo ever since she was a young girl. She knew her father had many of them. When he wasn't that bad to her, she would trace them all with her finger all up his arm until he snapped at her. She remembered it like it was yesterday.

* * *

"_Daddy? Why are there drawins on your arm?" the young blonde girl asked. Her father was sitting down on the old, stained sofa of their apartment, strumming a guitar. He put out his cigarette before replying. "They're tattoos. Yew should ge' one when yer older." The girl traced the line art of the work carefully with her finger, being careful not to miss one speck. She traced dragons and eagles and fancy script and squiggly lines she couldn't read. Some of the pictures had color in them. She gently shaded the colored parts with her finger. "Oi, stop tha'!" the man said, slapping her hand away. The girl's eyes welled up with tears, although she knew what the man's reaction would be. "Why're yew cryin now? Don' normal five year olds stop cryin' by now?" he yelled. "I-I'm sorry, Daddy. I-I don't mean ta cry… i' jus'…i' jus'…" Before she could finish, her father had smacked her upside the head and threw her to the floor. This was the girl's signal to run to her own room, which happened to be a small closet. She ran though the pitiful kitchen and into her "closet". She locked the door just before she heard her father's footsteps come up to it. The door was kicked loudly before the stingy blonde man lost interest in his daughter and went to go and drink. She could now cry softly in peace.

* * *

_

By now, Murdoc was calling to Yoko to hurry up. "Urm, I really hafta go. If yew wanna come by my place sometime, here's my address." Yoko picked up a torn receipt from the floor and picked a pen out of her pocket. She scribbled down the address to Kong. "It's the massive house on the hill in Essex. Yew can' miss i'." The man nodded and waved as she left to go and pay for the CD she suggested. He liked that girl. A lot.

Yoko and Murdoc sped home on the mototcycle. It was getting quite late, and they needed to get home before Russel had a hissy fit. Yoko had to stop at a convenience store to get Noodle her Yan-Yan, which proved to be a difficult task. Not many convenience stores in Essex carried Yan-Yan. After that mission was fulfilled, the two arrived back at Kong at precisely 9 PM. Russel was sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper from a week ago. "Where did you two go? Ya didn't tell me anythin'!" he boomed. His white eyes were glaring at Murdoc. "And what happened to yer fingers, Baby-girl?" Yoko shifted her weight to her right foot. "Bass." she mumbled. "An' we took a trip to London…" Russel facepalmed himself. "You two go to London without tellin' me? What the hell, Muds?" Murdoc, however, wasn't there. He had left to go to his Winnebago. Russel grumbled something and kissed Yoko goodnight as he went up to go and work on some sort of taxidermy project. Yoko was now completely alone. She decided to grab a banana and wander off to 2D's room. She passed the now quiet Winnebago and knocked gently before entering the cerulean haired singer's ground floor room. 2D was sitting on his bed watching a zombie film. "Oh, 'ello, lil' luv!" he said cheerfully. An empty cup of coffee sat on his nightstand, along with a bowl of popcorn. He was curled up in an odd position, making Yoko wonder how he could even be comfortable. "Hey. Wotchu doin'?" she asked while plopping onto his bed. "No' much. I've been doin' a zombie movie marathon for the past…eh… t'ree hours. I's fun!" Yoko smiled at the older man. "I go' a new CD today. We should give i' a listen if yew ge' a chance." she mentioned. "Sounds grea'! We should do i' tomorrow when Noods isn't asleep." 2D flashed her a toothless smile. A gory part came up on the television, making Yoko want to look. Heads were cut off, along with limbs and necks. Yoko jumped when a sudden burst of thunder and lightning shook the house. 2D jumped a bit too before wrapping his arms around Yoko to console her. The thunder came in repetitive thumps and it shook Kong worse and worse every single time. He kept his long, lanky arms wrapped around her. He was quite warm despite the cold basement room he occupied. Yoko and 2D stayed wrapped together until the power went out. They heard Murdoc yelling from the Winnie and shouting multiple profanities at his mobile home for shutting down on him. Yoko stifled a laugh before she got out of 2D's soft grip. "I'm goin' to bed. G'night, Stu!" She skipped out of his room and up to the lift. 2D stretched out on his bed, reluctant to letting Yoko go.

Yoko's room was dark and bathed with an eerie blue light from her window. French doors led out to a small balcony outside. She walked gracefully into the room and opened them, letting the cold February air and rain come in. Lightning stroked the sky carefully like a paintbrush. Yoko looked at the time: 10:00 PM. It was a bit early for her to retire into her bed, but she figured that she would need all the energy she could get. The night was still, and the thunder had died down significantly. Yoko cocked an eyebrow and walked outside her balcony, feeling the cool rain hit her skin. It was a sensation she had wanted to feel for a while now. Her shirt soon became soaked as she watched the moon shine through the clouds. She looked down onto the railing for a moment, where a fairly small object came into view. She picked it up gently, feeling its plastic finish. She wiped off the water with the small dry patch on her shirt. It was her ocarina. "Wot's this doin' ou' 'ere…" she mumbled to herself. She put it to her lips gently, feeling the wetness cascade onto her once dry mouth. She blew into it softly, listening to her favorite melody spew out. It was a lullaby: a quiet, gentle lullaby that she frequently hummed to Noodle to get her to go to sleep. Playing it out in the rain made it seem so much more relaxing. She had to carefully maneuver her fingers over the holes in an effort not to let it slip and fall into the landfill below her. The melancholic melody continued on until Yoko heard a slight noise. It sounded like humming. She turned around to see 2D standing in the door, watching the guitarist with curiosity. "Z-Zelda's Lullaby?" he asked softly. Yoko turned to look over the landfill again, nodding. "M-May I try i'?" he asked. He walked onto the wet balcony and became wet almost instantly. Yoko handed over the small instrument to the man. He put his lips to it and blew, making a terrible noise come out. "You've go' to be gentle with i'. Breathe slowly." she suggested. 2D did as he was told and made more affable sound come out. "There yew go. Now, pu' your fingers down on 'i." He, once again, did as he was told. The melody had no pattern and his fingers struggled to keep in place. He was about to give up until he felt Yoko's bandaged fingers over his, moving them in the right direction to keep her strong melody going again. "You've go' i' now." she whispered. Her fingers moved tenderly over his, keeping them in place. They sat there for an hour, playing different carillons and harmonies. The rain never let up. They were at peace.


	18. Saturday Night Review

*sigh* Ok, first of all, don't be mad at me. I took a vacation from you guys. It's not my fault. School has been really bad lately, and I've been needed to write a lot for my Short Stories class and I've kind of left this story in the dust. I promise it will never take this long to update again. I rushed the end of this chapter because I don't have my copy of Rise of the Ogre right now and I can't get the Phase 1 Tour dates anywhere. Now then, no more excuses. On with the chapter.

* * *

"So, you're tellin' me tha' yew jus' challenged a film crew to stay in the graveyard overnight to film us for the Clint Eastwood video?" Murdoc just nodded and snickered. "You're insane! Are yew tryin' to scare them away?" Yoko asked from the mixing table. "Look, luv, they're coming in a few hours. Jus' be outside and ready by nine." he replied before walking out of the room. Yoko threw her hands in the air in distress. Murdoc had gotten so much more difficult over the past few days for no apparent reason. Whether it be mixing b-sides, tuning a guitar or going grocery shopping, Yoko had been doing a lot. She grumbled to herself before getting up from the old, stained office chair that overlooked the mixing board. The clock on the wall said it was 3:00. It always said that. Nobody ever bothered to change the batteries, so it had been inaccurate for years. Yoko shuffled out of the room and into the lift, looking for something to do. Sneaking away from either the studio or her room seemed to be a rare pleasure now. Shutting herself inside wasn't what she wanted to do, but it was necessary if anything wanted to get done. She refused help from everyone. A few people were able to sneak around it, however. Yoko briskly found herself in the grungy kitchen of Kong. Everyone except Murdoc was in there eating something. Noodle tossed her Pocky container in the trash and looked up at the older guitarist. She noticed her eyes which were puffy and red. There were plenty of bags beneath them, too many for the young Japanese girl to count. Yoko almost collapsed into the empty chair that was available to her by the table. The lack of sleep really was getting to her. Instinctively, Noodle jumped onto her lap and looked more closely into her face. Yoko forced a smile while Noodle put her small hands onto her face. She moved her finger down in the space below her eyes, making the whole bottom of Yoko's eye show. "Murdoc." she stated. Yoko tilted her head in confusion and ignored the comment. "Did Muds tell yew 'bout the video tha's apparently bein' shot tonight?" she asked quietly. 2D lifted his head from a bowl of cereal. "A video?" he responded. "Yeah." Silence filled the room. Russel got up and threw away his paper plate that once held a rack of ribs. "Damn… I actually wanted to get some sleep tonight." he sighed. Yoko checked the time on the microwave. It read 7:45. "Noodle, do yew wanna go upstairs and get ready?" the head guitarist asked. Noodle perked up a bit and nodded rapidly. Yoko was soon dragged off her seat and shoved into the lift on the way to Noodle's room.

"Noods, could yew please jus' stand still for five seconds?" Noodle was running around her room in her Hello Kitty pajamas. She squealed and laughed whenever she fell on the floor. Her radio helmet rested on the nightstand beside her bed. Noodle whizzed past it, almost knocking it over. For a finale, she back flipped onto the bed, making the blankets wrinkle. Yoko studied the little Japanese girl. Both of them were learning new things about each other every single day. Yoko laid out Noodle's clothes beside her. "Come on, get ou' o' yer pajamas. I's already 8:30!" Noodle did as she was told and changed while Yoko got out the hairbrush. Noodle's hairstyle was not one that you would think she would have. It was a samurai style, which made it difficult to comb. Noodle obediently sat down on the floor as Yoko crouched down to comb her jet black locks. She combed the odd hair neatly and set Noodle's radio helmet onto her head. The younger guitarist perked up, got up, bowed, and then left the room without a word.

Yoko wandered into her own room to find something to wear. She had been wearing the same clothes for the past week. The entire contents of her closet had almost literally exploded onto the floor and onto furniture. Nobody bothered to clean it up. Yoko crept up to the closet slowly, just in case it decided to spit out any more clothes. She chuckled to herself and poked her head inside. There was a canary yellow shirt, a pair of capris and a jean jacket strewn on the floor. Yoko grunted and started sorting through the rest of her clothing. She decided on a long sleeved orange and black striped shirt with some black jeans. It was decent and clean, so she didn't argue. She walked over to her mirror and observed her ragged hair. It now reached down to her lower back. She sighed and crawled out of her old, smelly clothes and into the clean new ones. The comb sitting on her dresser was begging to be used. Yoko ignored it and let her hair stay matted down. The time on the clock by her bed read 8:57. The sight made Yoko jump and she quickly went downstairs to meet everyone else.

The video was what some would call a disaster. Some would call it a masterpiece. In Murdoc Niccals' case, it was a disaster. He sat in his Winnebago drinking a bottle of cheap rum while holding an ice pack to his crotch. The bassist reclined a bit further in his chair and changed the channel on his television. The subscription to the adult channels had just run out and he was becoming desperate for something to watch. He flipped through channel after channel and passed numerous amounts of bad sitcoms and chick flicks. There was nothing on. Not even Saturday Night Live was amusing. The older man threw the remote with a thud onto the floor. When the batteries flopped out, he cursed loudly and thought back to the situation that had got him to where he was. The wild ape zombies of Kong had come out as expected that night, and they were in a mood. That mood was not a particularly good one, and one of them had forcefully grabbed his crotch and pulled him into the ground. He was now in a sour mood. He thought back to the other events of that night. He still thought that he had made a hit video, despite the casualties. The ice from the pack started melting through the bag. As the water dripped onto the Satanist's pants, he cursed yet again and remembered Yoko's instructions. She had told him to change the ice pack routinely as if he was a little kid and didn't know how to take care of himself. He grunted as he emptied the melting ice into the kitchenette sink. There was a fresh tray of ice cubes waiting for him in the freezer, along with a dead rat and three year old pizza. Murdoc put the ice in a plastic bag and went back to his perch on the recliner, still waiting for a decent TV show.

Yoko sat in the eye-wrenching fluorescent light of the kitchen. It had to have been past midnight, she thought. The rain was still pouring down on Kong. Every drop could be heard pounding on the roof. The guitarist sighed at the moment of peace. Jamie, Damon, Russel and even 2D had gone out for drinks. Murdoc was out of commission for the time being, which made Yoko chuckle. The whole video had gone by fast. It started to get a bit out of hand by the time they were about to finish, but it had still made her day a bit better than it should have been. Noodle had wandered off to bed a few minutes after they had come back inside. Yoko felt her stomach cringing inside of her. She had no dinner before the filming. In fact, she hadn't eaten at all that whole day. The girl groaned, and, out of sheer boredom, got up to find something to eat. The only thing left in the fridge was a single chicken wing. She picked it up and ate it absent-mindedly. Yoko bit down on it. It slithered down her throat rapidly. Yawning, she went down the hallway and into the lift to go to bed for the first time in two days.

"Yoko, there's some post for yew!" 2D said cheerily. Yoko sat at the table in the kitchen with 2D by her side. They were going through the countless amounts of bills and magazines that had come for Murdoc. Yoko looked at the letter carefully. It had no return address. Regardless of the obscurity, she opened the letter carefully. Out fell a handwritten note on a piece of college ruled notebook paper. She picked it up and read it carefully. A smile spread across her face when she figured out the writer. "Who's i' from?" 2D craned his neck over to read the small document. "I's from a friend o' mine." Yoko picked up a pen and wrote an address on her hand. "Is i' a boy…?" he questioned. Yoko blushed and said nothing. 2D twitched his left eye and studied the girl in front of him. "Does Muds know?" Yoko shook her head no. She abruptly stood up, making the old chair scrape the floor loudly. "I-I'm goin' ou'. 'M takin' the Geep, too." she declared. 2D cocked an eyebrow, but brushed it off. Yoko proceeded to skip out to the carpark and into the Geep to go on an adventure of her own.

The usually confident boy paced around his apartment. He hadn't had a girl over for a while. They all feared him. He hoped the letter had reached her in time. What if she couldn't make it? He had said to call him if that was the case. He hadn't gotten any calls. Paranoia was starting to set in. He frantically checked his phone for any missed calls, even though the ringtone was on as loud as possible. He was tempted to call her. He looked out his window. A few cars passed; nothing unusual. However, he jumped at the sight of the large Geep that parallel parked right in front of his house. She was in it. And now, she was walking to his door.

Yoko knocked on the door of the apartment softly. She was overjoyed when she had received the letter from Chris, the boy she had met quite a few days before. She smiled to herself as the door opened, revealing a tall, tattooed man with the same brown hair she had remembered. "H-Hi Yoko! Nice to see yew again!" he said while waving awkwardly. "I go' the invitation just in time, actually. Fanks for inviting me over!" she replied as she was ushered into the modern apartment. "Yew know, I didn' think people still used snail mail…" she continued. "Oh, erm, yeah, I do." he replied nervously. "Please, sit down." He pointed to the large sectional in middle of the room. Yoko quickly sat down. Chris was careful to sit on the exact opposite side of her. "Uh, how 'ave you been?" he asked tentatively. Yoko looked around the room. "Pretty good, 'ow 'bout yew?" Chris also looked around to see what she was looking at. "I've been ok. So, uh, when's your band's album coming out?" Yoko had no idea what day it was. She looked at the calendar that was on a wall. "Er, I believe it's coming out on the 26th of March…" she responded. Immediately, the tattoo artist's eyes bugged out. "That's tomorrow!" he said, sounding slightly surprised."Crap, I never realized that!" the guitarist chuckled and scratched her head. "Do yew wan' to go ou' an' ge' some coffee or tea or somefing?" Yoko suggested. Chris nodded, and shortly after, the two went into the Geep and off to the nearest coffee shop.

"Yew sodding idiot! Where the 'ell is she! Yew said yew were there when she left!" Murdoc punched 2D in the face a second time. 2D cowered on the floor as he nursed a bloody nose. "M-Muds, I-I don' know where she wen'!" he squeaked. Murdoc sighed and gave the singer a final kick in the stomach before walking back to the car park. Sometimes he thought 2D was completely useless. Murdoc trudged through the useless junk and was about to open the door to the Winnebago when he heard a running engine. He cursed to himself and turned around to see the Geep being parked in its regular spot. Yoko stepped out of the car with an unusual grace. "Where the 'ell 'ave yew been?" Murdoc boomed. His screech shook Kong furiously. Yoko looked up to see Murdoc staring at her, his face looking like a bull's. "We don' 'ave time fer yew to be goin' ou'! The album is released tomorrow!" he continued. "B-But I can do wot I wan', I'm…" Yoko was soon interrupted. "Yer no' eighteen ye', luv! Yew can't do wot yew wan'!" the bassist yelled. "Bu' everyfing is finished!" Yoko retorted. Murdoc's face softened. "I' is?" he asked dumbly. Yoko glared at him. "Yew haven't noticed that I've been workin' my arse off for the past month?" she asked. Murdoc stepped back. "I thought there was more tha' needed to be done! Wot about the tour?" he asked. "That's all taken care of." Yoko said, annoyed. "Woteva." Murdoc sighed and walked into the Winnebago curtly, leaving Yoko in the dust.

_March 26th, 2001- Gorillaz self-titled debut album is released_

Gorillaz were now becoming a hit. The album debuted at #3 on the British charts. People now knew who Gorillaz were and they wanted more. People were now recognizing Murdoc, 2D, Noodle, Russel and Yoko on the streets. The tour was creeping up slowly on them, and_ the fun was only about to begin._

* * *

Er, was that good? Sorry is there wasn't a lot of action. I couldn't put a lot of it in. Please, please don't give up on me yet! I'll have the next chapter up by **Aprilish**. XD

Nah, just kidding. It'll be up soon. ;)


	19. Fire Coming Out of a Monkey's Head

*sigh* It's been a while, hasn't it? I'm sorry. The only legit excuse I have for not updating is school, and even that excuse is getting old. I hope you like that I actually spaced out this chapter. Enjoy. :)

* * *

_February 20th, 2002- Gorillaz perform Clint Eastwood live at the BRIT Awards…_

Murdoc sat backstage, away from everyone else in the band. Girls were literally throwing themselves at him. It was what he had always wanted. One hand was holding his Flying V, and both of his arms were each supporting anywhere from two to five women at a time. He snickered and tuned his bass with his rough, callused fingers. The fame was starting to get to him.

"H-Hey Muuuurdoc, are ya doin' anythin' after the show?" asked one of the blonde girls on Murdoc's left arm. She was a drug addict, a prostitute and an alcoholic, much to Murdoc's delight. Murdoc shrugged.

"Maybe. Maybe not." he replied casually. The girl grunted angrily. She wasn't getting the attention she wanted.

"Can I come home with you, Muurdoc?" slurred a redhead girl, who couldn't be older than 18. Her hair was poorly dyed and her strawberry blonde roots were a bit too apparent.

Murdoc sighed. He knew they were all going to end up coming home with him. Of course, he didn't mind at all. All of the girls were the same. Same clothes, same hairsprayed, bleached hair, same bodies. But he liked them that way. As thin as a stick, anorexic and blonde was his personal favorite type. If they were covered in a perfume and nicotine veil, he considered it to be a bonus. Clothes also didn't matter, since they would be coming off as soon as possible.

"The more the merrier…" he thought.

* * *

Yoko sat with Noodle on a soft, green velour couch in the room next to Murdoc's. The flat screen TV was streaming the awards show live. She popped a cracker slathered with Vegemite into her mouth. The cracker, which was covered in yeast based spread slid down her throat comfortably. Yoko watched in anticipation as a few of the awards were accepted by bands she hadn't even heard of. They all seemed to be the same. As the TV droned of sounds of clapping and popular music, the guitarist tried her best to sleep through it all.

"Maybe if I don't wake up, I won't have to go anywhere or do anything…" she thought.

Her slumber was soon interrupted by a loud crashing noise. Noodle tumbled onto the floor in shock. Yoko snapped her eyes open. 2D had come into the room and knocked down the jar of Vegemite onto the floor. It happened to be Yoko's favorite snack. Thankfully, the jar was almost empty. The bluenette was shaking with fear. He was nervous about the show, and he seemed to be leaving an obvious trail of destruction in his path. He had already accidently spilled coffee on a show producer.

"'M really sorry, Yoko… 'm nervous an'…"

Yoko interrupted him.

"It's fine… I was jus' sleepin'." she said with a genuine smile.

"Oh, yew were sleepin? 'M really, really sorry I woke ya up…" he whimpered. Yoko sighed.

"Do yew wan' me to take Noodle to get somefink to eat. I don't fink she likes Vegemite… or woteva that is…" 2D pointed to the small mess on the floor. Yoko shrugged. Almost immediately, Noodle climbed up onto the mountain that was 2D's shoulders. The singer smiled brightly and waved at Yoko as he walked out with the younger guitarist perched on top of him.

Yoko actually got some sleep despite the noises coming from Murdoc's room. She hadn't seen him or Russel since they first arrived. After an hour of rest, Yoko was shaken awake by a producer.

"Ma'am, the Gorillaz are going on right now. I suggest you go out and join them." he grunted. Yoko jolted up and grabbed her guitar.

"Thank you, sir!" she shouted. Frantically, she looked for the stage door in the hallways. The short, narrow halls were polluted with people of all different kinds. Producers, assistants, performers, stagehands, and rabid fans were among the many people that were there. Yoko stood still and waited to be helped. She didn't know what to do. She could swear she heard someone yell "Where's Yoko?" She thought it was just her imagination until a cold hand grasped her shoulder. Yoko turned around rapidly and saw a nerdy looking assistant behind her.

"W-We need you on the stage, Miss Yoko…" he stumbled. Yoko nodded as she was shoved towards the stage door. 2D, Russel and Noodle had just gotten on stage. The crowd was wild. However, there was still one thing missing: Murdoc.

Yoko looked at Russel anxiously. He shrugged back. They had to start without Murdoc. They couldn't sit there like idiots. Yoko shrugged and turned her face towards the crowd. Not even 2D was nervous anymore. Yoko felt all alone as Russel started the performance with the pounding noise of his drums. Yoko had no choice but to play.

Murdoc still wasn't there thirty seconds in. For most people, it didn't seem like a long time. For Yoko, it seemed like Murdoc hadn't been there for thirty minutes. She kept up with the chords she needed to play and pushed Murdoc out of her mind. It took only a few more seconds for Murdoc to make his grand entrance on the stage. The crowd cheered even louder as he jumped up onto the stage and stuck his long tongue out at the audience. Yoko looked over and smiled. She felt more comfortable. The stress and tension seemed to melt away as her fingers hit the nickel strings over and over again. The crowd seemed to get louder and louder as the performance went on. While Murdoc sucked it all in, Yoko tuned the noises and screeches out. She focused on the rhythms… the beats… the chords. It was all over too fast.

* * *

Although Gorillaz hadn't won any awards that night, the lessons they learned were more valuable than anything else. Or, at least, that's how it was for Yoko.

Murdoc dragged the rest of the band backstage after the performance. He claimed that he didn't want to go down and sit with all the other celebrities because they were "all useless pieces of rubbish". Based on his attitude, it was obvious he only wanted to go backstage to see his lady friends again. Nobody dared to challenge Murdoc, (Not even Russel) so everyone else obliged and sat in the green room to watch the remainder of the awards. Artists they had never heard of were winning awards. Murdoc sat with them the first five minutes.

"Who are these people? They call themselves musicians… they're a load of crap!" he screeched.

"Murdoc, they're not really that bad. You should be looking up to some of them." Russel sighed. Noodle and 2D nodded their heads.

"We're the best band in the world! They don't even know real music!"

And with that, Murdoc Niccals went back to his other room to be with about ten prostitutes who didn't care about his taste in music or his revolting personality.

After a few more hours of awards, autographs, and boring interviews, the five Gorillaz trudged home with about ten extra passengers in their limo. The ride home was insanely appalling, especially since Murdoc was extremely drunk. He slurred his speech continuously, and uttered words that made Russel cover Noodle and Yoko's ears. 2D sat in a corner, alone.

* * *

The noises still wouldn't go away. Stuart Pot groaned as he pushed more old keyboard boxes against the door. The guttural and unappealing sounds coming from outside made him cringe with anger and even some guilt. The resonances of the moaning and guitar riffs were getting to him. He quickly ran to the corner of the room and heaved his dinner onto the ground. It was the moments like these where he missed Paula. He needed her. His desire for her grew every day, every hour. He would do anything to get her back.

The singer cried out the little tears he had left and flopped onto his bed. After a handful of minutes passed, he made some noise of his own. The sounds were slightly muffled from the pillow. Regardless of this, his words were still clear.

"It's broken!" he wailed.

"Our love is broken!"

A guitar was resting against the headboard along with a torn and burned sheet of paper. He lifted his head up ever so slightly and stared at the objects.

"I-It's broken…. our love….broken…it's broken….our love…"

Madly, he dashed for the paper. He picked a blue pen up off of the floor and started scribbling it all down. Although most of it came from some of the thoughts he had when he was high on crack a while ago, it was still sentimental. It was his love story; their love story.

"You're such a stupid… crackhead!" she yelled.

Yoko threw her guitar onto the bed. Songwriting was the only thing she could think to do, and even that was proving to be annoying. The riffs weren't making sense anymore. The chords were getting fuzzy. The puzzled guitarist stared out her window, wondering why those last words had come out. She had to admit she was thinking about Paula and some of Murdoc's random lovers at the time. Yoko clawed at her bed. Why couldn't she think of anything to do? Almost mechanically, she crawled off the bed. The clock read 3:00 AM. She only gave it a glance and marched off to 2D's room in search of something to do.

* * *

2D was hyperventilating after he heard Yoko scream.

"Why is there puke on the floor?" she screeched.

The singer looked at the dried up mess and shrugged.

"Couldn't make it to the bafroom, I guess…" he responded. Yoko quickly cocked an eyebrow and shook her head.

"I don' believe a word of that nonsense." she replied. 2D frowned.

The two stared at each other for a few brief seconds before the guitarist made herself comfortable on 2D's bed. 2D bit his lip. He couldn't let Yoko find the song.

Almost instantly, Yoko saw a sheet of paper sticking out from under the blunette's pillow. 2D's dark orbs widened.

"Nonononono, don' look at that!" he squeaked. She looked up at him.

"Look at wot, the paper?"

2D nodded. Yoko hesitantly looked at the paper and slid it out from under the pillow. She scanned it briefly.

"2-2D… this is brilliant… truly brilliant…" A smile spread across Yoko's face, causing 2D to beam proudly.

"Ya really fink it's good?" he asked. He was only looking for more assurance from his friend.

"Absolutely!" said Yoko, who was already back in a good mood. 2D blushed.

"Fanks…" he said, looking down.

Yoko fixed the pillows on 2D's bed so that they were neat and tidy.

"Are Murdoc's lady friends gone yet?" she asked.

"Don't ya know by now that they leave at around six?" the singer answered.

Yoko didn't respond. She was busy tuning 2D's lonely guitar and coming up with riffs for his song.

"I think it should be called Broken…" she said. She was concentrating now. 2D only watched her. He hadn't picked up a guitar in a long while. It had all been about his keyboards. But his guitar was always there by his bed somewhere. It just never got used.

"This guitar is horribly out of tune, you know." Yoko said blankly.

"Oh…"

* * *

The only conversations exchanged over the next few hours consisted of either grunts or lyrics. Yoko tuned the guitar accordingly, and 2D played his song the way she told him to. If Yoko wanted him to raise the pitch or lower the pitch, she'd motion it to him with her hands. It took the singer a while to catch on, causing Yoko to become a bit frustrated. It didn't matter, though. Once the pitches and notes were right, they performed the song until everything was correct. 2D came up with amateur drum beats by tapping his hands on the mattress while Yoko hummed a makeshift bassline. Everything seemed to be going right that night, until a loud shriek was heard from outside the hall. Murdoc's voice soon followed after it. Both voices uttered profanities, some of them Yoko hadn't even heard of before. 2D groaned loudly and threw his pillow over his head. Suddenly, the doorknob started shaking violently. The screaming increased steadily and the door was shaking. Yoko stared at the door, and then looked back to 2D. The singer was no longer on the bed. He was under the bed, shaking at the sounds coming from outside. He thought, no, he knew Murdoc was going to come inside and beat him. Almost everyone in Kong knew that whenever the bassist was mad because one of his many women stole his wallet, he would come into 2D's room to attack him. The amount of scars and serious wounds he had obtained over the last month was countless.

"2D?" the guitarist squeaked. By the time 2D picked himself up off of the ground, his door had already been busted down by one of Murdoc's women. She was short, but very muscular. Her short, fire engine red hair was plastered onto her face with raw sweat. Her hair seemed to be dyed, because strawberry blonde roots were visible. She wore only a long, ripped tank top and boots that came to her upper thighs. She seemed to be seething with anger as she bitterly stared at Yoko. 2D rapidly fell to the ground again, intimidated by the young woman and the strength she appeared to posses.

"W-Where am I?" she growled. Her breathing became heavier.

Yoko pushed herself against the bed to try to escape the woman.

"Y-Yer in Essex…" Yoko whispered.

"Essex? 'Ow the 'ell did I get in Essex?" She was screaming now.

"W-Were you one of the groupies at the Brits last night?"

The woman stared at Yoko.

"I'm not… well… alright, I was! I was one of the drunk groupies, ok?" She scratched at her arm, causing one of her many scabs to bleed. Yoko could only assume that it was from some sort of drug.

"Y-Yer bleedin'…" the guitarist said. "Why don't ya stay here and we can 'elp ya?"

Another yell was present in the carpark.

"BANDIT! WHERE ARE YA?" Murdoc screamed. There was more anger in his voice than the groupie.

The girl cringed. "P-Please! Hide me!" she squealed.

Murdoc appeared in the doorway seconds later. He was a mess; he was only in his dirty, soiled briefs and his greasy hair wasn't in its normal hairstyle. It was flying in every direction imaginable. He, like the girl, was sweaty and enraged. He had cigarette burns on his bare chest, along with other red and purple marks that came from places unknown.

Murdoc glared one of the most ferocious glares 2D and Yoko had ever seen. He looked like he was about to tear someone to shreds with his razor sharp green teeth.

"B-Bandit… get yer' arse out 'ere now…" he bellowed.

"N-No… not again…" the girl, whose name was obviously Bandit, said. She seemed to have on odd sense of false confidence in her voice. A voice that Murdoc refused to tolerate.

"I said get yer sorry arse out here! Move!" the bassist roared. Bandit slowly shuffled over to him, causing Murdoc to smirk at his own authority. Bandit looked around and hastily grabbed Murdoc's wallet from his waist. Murdoc shrieked.

"OI! GET BACK 'ERE!" He immediately ran after Bandit.

"I'm only stayin' true to my name…" she whispered.

Almost instantly, Yoko ran after them both. She could outrun Murdoc and the groupie easily. Yoko dived on top of Bandit and snatched the wallet from her sweaty palms. As Bandit looked up at her attacker, she saw that her eyes were turning a nasty shade of red.

"I-I'm sorry! Really!" she pleaded. Yoko didn't budge. A hand touched Yoko's shoulder.

"I got i', luv. Yew can get of of 'er now." Murdoc said. He had calmed down quite a bit. Yoko nodded and grunted as Murdoc quietly pulled her off of Bandit and slipped the wallet out of her hands.

Bandit never came over again.

Gorillaz continued to play a few live shows and they were soon introduced to the American audience.

The album sales were projected to be only about 25,000. But America fell in love with the virtual band and boosted the sales to over 75,000 and counting. As people went bananas for Gorillaz, the videos for 19-2000 and Rock the House were released. And, on August 15th, 2001, Gorillaz flew to Japan.

Little did Yoko know that a storm was brewing inside her family.

Something she was not expecting at all.

* * *

OOH, CLIFFHANGER! :3 I actually want to write chapter 20 and get it over with. I'll have plenty of time over winter break. Maybe I'll even write a Christmas Special... I dunno. Review, please! You have no idea how much I lurve reading them. It really encourages me! Seriously.

Meow.


	20. Maybe we Could Take a Ride

Update time!

I JUST realized that I got a few dates wrong. The Japan visit was before the BRITS. I'm sorry for that error. ^^;

Also, some of the context that's supposed to be spoken in Japanese in this chapter is either written in English or is written in Romanized Japanese. I'll put the translations at the end of that chapter.

I hope all of you had a happy new year/merry christmas. Enjoy the chapter. :D

* * *

A slender Japanese woman sat calmly in a chair. Her small apartment in the city of Nagano was getting too cramped for her husband, their three children and her. The school district wasn't very good, either. They needed to move. No matter how many times the woman pestered her husband, the angrier he became.

"Can we please move, Ichibashi-san?" she asked.

"Shut up, Tanaka." He growled. He didn't want to be stuck with this woman. They were victims of an arranged marriage. His wife's parents had arranged all of it.

The marriage had taken place only ten years ago. He thought he could get out of it until they had three healthy, young children. He couldn't divorce her.

The marriage went well when they were on their honeymoon. When Ichibashi asked his new wife why the marriage had happened, she gave a sketchy response.

"I guard my past heavily, Ichi-chan. My parents do not want me telling you. I have already been warned by them."

"Warned about what?" The man has raised his voice, causing his wife to cower in fear.

"N-Nothing, Ichibashi-san! Y-You will have to ask them! I cannot say!" She started crying. Ichibashi sighed in anger. He could never get anything out of this woman.

Flash forward to ten years later. Ichibashi sat at the table in their apartment. The three kids were sitting next to him, eating rice silently.

"B-But this place is so small… we cannot stay here much longer." Tanaka whispered.

The man suddenly stood up violently.

"I thought I told you to shut your face!" he screamed. Their youngest child dropped his rice bowl on the floor, causing Ichibashi to slap him.

"Don't hurt him!" Tanaka yelled. Beads of sweat formed on her brow as her husband walked over to her with an arm raised.

"You can't tell me what to do!" he screamed again. His raised hand came down and collided with the young woman's cheek. The hand left a harsh, dark red imprint.

Tanaka could only cry. She couldn't defend herself or her children.

"Y-You're just like him…" she mumbled as she went back to cooking more rice.

"Just like who?" Ichibashi asked. His face softened briefly.

"T-That man… my love…" she said, louder.

"I thought you loved Papa..." their only daughter inquired. Her father shot her a dirty look, and she continued eating instead of joining the conversation.

"Ichi-chan, we need to talk." Tanaka said.

As she led him into the living room, the rice started to burn, causing their youngest son to cry.

He was ignored.

Tanaka was crying by the time she finished the story she knew she couldn't tell.

"You had another husband?" her husband screeched in disbelief. "And another child?"

Tanaka could only nod. "H-Her name was Yoko. S-She was beautiful… but she looked nothing like me. S-She had blonde hair... and stunning violet eyes… He took her away…" she sniffled.

The man was filled with rage, but also had a bit of sympathy for his wife.

"Why don't we just pretend this didn't happen? I won't tell your parents, I promise." He cooed and patted Tanaka's back. She nodded again. She lifted her tear stained face and kissed her husband before running back into the kitchen to attend to the now charred rice.

Ichibashi proceeded to pick up his briefcase and leave for work. Tanaka helped the kids get ready for school, and then she was alone.

The minute everyone was gone, she sprinted to the train station and bought a ticket to Osaka. It cost her all of her monthly allowance, but it was the only chance she had. She needed to get away before her family found out.

"Murdoc, why did you let her get a jet pack?" Yoko yelled from the bathroom. She ran a comb through her hair until Murdoc barged in.

"I didn'! Lards did!" he protested.

Yoko groaned. "I have a hard time believing that!"

They had only arrived in Japan a few days ago, and everyone else was already causing trouble. This trip was supposed to be relieving stress, and it was only becoming a nightmare.

"Murdoc, she's gonna 'urt herself! At least get 'er on the ground again!" Yoko asked politely.

Murdoc sighed like an annoyed teenager. "Let 'er 'ave fun." He told Yoko.

"Yeah, she's gonna be 'avin a lot of fun in the hospital." The guitarist mumbled. Almost immediately, Noodle came back up onto the hotel balcony and set her new toy on one of the foldable chairs. Yoko ran over to her.

"Noods, wait 'til we get back to Kong to use that again." She said in a soothing, motherly tone that made Noodle smile. Yoko went back outside and removed the jetpack from the chair. Oil leaked onto her shorts.

"Damn…" she whispered as she wiped off the sticky black liquid off.

"What did ya just say, Yoko-girl?" Russel asked. He was sitting right across from her, eating fried chicken. Of course Yoko wouldn't have cursed in front of Russel if she knew he was there.

"R-Russel…I… I-I'm sorry…"

Russel held his hand up.

"No, it's fine. Just don't curse around Noods. She doesn't know 'er English yet, don't let 'er pick up any of those words. Murdoc's mouth is bad enough…"

After his brief interference, Russel resumed eating his chicken.

Yoko breathed a sigh of relief as she wet her finger and tried to get the oil stain out once again. She scrubbed vigorously, but the spot didn't come out.

"Russel, how can I get the oil stain out?"

The drummer looked up at her with his mouth full.

"Go down to the laundry room, I guess. They have one." He suggested.

Yoko grunted. She hated doing the laundry at Kong. This was supposed to be a vacation where she didn't have to do laundry. She could watch the sunset and the city streets from her perch on the modern concrete balcony all day if she wanted to. She wasn't looking for chores.

Sighing, she exited the spacious hotel room and made her way down to the lobby. The lazy front desk attendants perked up into their assigned position when they saw her.

Yoko walked up the desk.

"How may I help you?" a blue suited man asked. He impatiently tapped his fingers on the granite counters, eagerly waiting an answer.

"Where's the laundry room?" the guitarist asked. The man simply pointed to a door that was next to the desk. Yoko nodded and headed in.

It was noon. He would be coming home from his lunch break about now. He would come home and still see the burnt rice from breakfast on the stove. He would see clattered dishes and bowls still left on the floor. He would read the note she left, saying how she was sorry. What would the kids think? What would her friends think? She was asking too many questions.

How had she already gotten a job in an Osaka hotel doing laundry? How did she have a gut feeling that her daughter was in that building? That was something she couldn't explain. She was going to need to explain it to her husband, but she didn't want to. She felt a need. A need so deep inside of her that it was barely audible. It had told her to leave everything she loved. She deserved better. It seemed so greedy, and yet so, so right at the same time.

The heat of the loud, industrial clothes dryers made sweat pour down her face. She had quickly learned what she could and couldn't do here. Her only job was to iron clothes. It was the easiest job in the whole place.

Suddenly, the large door to the laundry room opened, revealing a young girl. Her long blonde, streaked hair flew up into the air because of the large fans that were blowing. Tanaka looked up at her.

It was Yoko.

Her daughter.

Yoko.

Yoko walked into the room expecting it to be small and cramped, like most hotel laundry rooms. Instead, it was large. Industrial sized washers and dryers lined the walls, and women of all sizes were either loading and taking out clothes clothes, ironing clothes or folding them. The heat was unbearable. The gigantic fans from the ceiling started running, making her hair whip up into the air. She closed her eyes until the fans turned off. When she opened them again, a Japanese woman was standing in from of her. She seemed to be in her mid-thirties, and had long, luxurious black hair. Her lilac eyes resembled Yoko's tremendously. She was unusually tan for an Asian woman.

The older woman looked her straight into the eyes.

"Yoko?" she asked softly.

Yoko's eyes widened. Was this a relative of hers? She looked ridiculously similar to her. It couldn't be coincidental. The only relative she knew of was her mother. Thinking of her mother made her shiver. The only thing that could determine if this was her mother or not was her name.

What was her mother's name? Could she even remember? Tamaki? Tanako? Similar names fluttered into Yoko's mind. That's when it hit her.

"Tanaka-san?" Yoko asked calmly.

Tanaka nodded rapidly.

"M-Mama?" Yoko continued. Tanaka nodded again, and greeted Yoko with a hug.

The happy mother quickly took her apron off and tossed it to the floor and took Yoko's hand. She opened the door to the lobby and ran out.

"Watashi wa anata o oshiete takusan no koto o motte iru!" Tanaka exclaimed. Yoko smiled.

"Mama, watashi wa bando no yo! Koko de wa kyūka ni shite iru. Watashi wa igirisu ni sunde iru! Tō hoteru no heya ni kite, min'na o mitashite kudasai." Yoko squealed.

Soon, Yoko had brought her mother up to the spacious room to meet everyone. Tanaka instantly connected with Noodle. She even got along with Murdoc, who kissed her hand the moment he met her. The idea of her mother being in a relationship with Murdoc made her shudder and blush.

"So, yer the one who made my little guitarist over here?" Murdoc loosely pointed to Yoko.

Yoko translated everything for her mother. Tanaka nodded and her cheeks turned a shade redder than usual. Murdoc smirked.

Tanaka stayed with the band for the rest of their stay in Osaka. They even went through a DNA test, and Tanaka was indeed Yoko's mother.

The day Gorillaz were about to leave was a sad day for Tanaka. She hadn't told Yoko a thing about her past. She was determined to change that.

The rest of Gorillaz had gone out to a sound check for a brief show they were playing in the hotel before their departure. Yoko had been talking to Chris in her bedroom all of that night, so she decided to stay in bed. Tanaka walked in at precisely 9:00 AM to wake up her daughter.

Yoko was already awake, sitting up and reading. Tanaka sat on the bed, and Yoko pulled off her reading glasses.

"Hi Mama." She said with a smile.

Tanaka smiled back. She felt the need to dump all of her past almost literally onto Yoko's lap. She started talking about everything: about Yoko's father, about Yoko's step-siblings, about everything. Yoko sat and listened obediently. She had no idea that she was actually an accident; a mistake. Hearing this made Yoko cry. Before she knew it, she was wailing.

Tanaka kissed Yoko's head and consoled her. She got up off the bed.

"Watashi wa anata ga dōyō tsukutta mōshiwakenaku omotte iru. Watashi ga mama ni shite kudasai. Anata ga watashi o koko ni shitakunai." Tanaka whispered. As Yoko continued to cry, her mother slipped out of the hotel.

Little did Yoko know that it would be the last and only time she would ever see her mother ever again.

Tanaka went home. There wasn't anywhere else to go. She rode the train back to Nagano and walked back to her husband's small home. She had cried so much on the train, causing her face to be red and puffy. When she opened the door, she found her husband right in front of her, getting ready to leave for work. Tanaka looked down in shame.

"I-Ichibashi-san…I'm-" The woman was interrupted by a slap to her face.

Ichibashi screamed at her. The kids ran into their rooms as the frightening man beat his wife senselessly. When he was done, blood was splattered everywhere. Tanaka had cuts everywhere. As she crawled to the kitchen to get bandages, Ichibashi followed her and stomped on her arm. She whimpered in pain and her arm almost completely separated from her shoulder. The cruel man simply left after that, leaving his wife to bleed on the floor helplessly.

After playing a short show, Gorillaz went back to Kong. Yoko was a wreck. Her mother had left her. Murdoc and Russel swore revenge on that woman. They had left their Yoko alone. Yoko told them not to worry. 2D gave her some Vegemite before the plane took off. It was cheese flavored. Yoko was slightly happy.

The only word Murdoc had on his mind when he arrived back at his zombie infested mansion was "tour". Gorillaz needed to tour. Murdoc soon hired a tour bus, and off Gorillaz went.

The final stop was in Mexico. It was the end of the road. Gorillaz had grown emotionally, physically, and musically. Yoko became an adult on her 18th birthday. Murdoc took her out to a bar for a round of vodka shots.

With the Mexico gig done and over with, Gorillaz decided to go to Hollywood.

_March 13__th__, 2002. Gorillaz move into 125 Mullholland Drive

* * *

_**TRANSLATIONS:**

_Watashi wa anata o oshiete takusan no koto o motte iru!_

I have so many things to tell you!

_Mama, watashi wa bando no yo! Koko de wa kyūka ni shite iru. Watashi wa igirisu ni sunde iru! Tō hoteru no heya ni kite, min'na o mitashite kudasai._

Mama, I'm in a band! We're on vacation here. I live in England! Please come up to our hotel room and meet everyone.

_Watashi wa anata ga dōyō tsukutta mōshiwakenaku omotte iru. Watashi ga mama ni shite kudasai. Anata ga watashi o koko ni shitakunai._

I am sorry I've made you upset. I should leave. You do not want me here.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know, I know, I skipped the first tour. I did that so I could move on to Phase 2, which is the part I've been looking forward to write.


End file.
